Can the Lost be Found?
by 14AmyChan
Summary: Lame title is lame... anyhoot 'n holler, I wasn't even gonna write this story, but drawing the cover art made me. XD hope ya'll like it ! T for violence. Phinabella fluff because I'm me. XD
1. Prolouge

_**14AmyChan: okay, so this is another big fanfiction. Well, big for me. *^_^***_

_**Phineas: what is it about?**_

_**14AmyChan: um… you know what, I'll let you guys decide that for yourselves. *^_^***_

_**Phineas: what?!**_

_**Isabella: Miss AmyChan does not own any of us, and boy am I glad for that…**_

_**14AmyChan: hey!**_

It was another beautiful summer day. The last, in fact. The last invention of the summer had already been whisked away, but the fun had not. Not yet at least.

"I gotta go, my ma's makin tuff meat," Buford announced, gruffly making his way out of the Flynn-Fletcher back gate with his nerd, Baljeet, slung carelessly over his shoulder.

"Yes, it is time to leave. I will see all of you on the first day of school tomorrow~!" the boy gleefully shouted as they left the premises. Phineas chuckled lightheartedly before Ferb tapped him on the shoulder. The boy turned to see that his brother was holding his toolkit and pointing to the garage. Understanding his intent, Phineas simply grinned.

"Sure, bro, see you inside," the red-head smiled. He turned to the last of their friends to leave. Isabella Garcia-Shapiro stood near the tree, laying a hand on it and casting her worried eyes upon it. Something had been bothering her the past few days, and Phineas had noticed.

"Hey, Isabella, whatcha doin?" he asked as he walked up behind her. Isabella seemed startled and was obviously relieved when she found it was Phineas who had was standing behind her.

"Hey, Phineas," she replied. At that moment, she seemed torn. Phineas noticed, but not what about. He simply smiled and took her hand. She seemed to tense for a little bit, and then relax just a jot. Her eyes darted nervously around the backyard, but the red headed boy didn't seem to notice that detail.

"Hey, Phineas…" Isabella began urgently, but trailed off, unsure of what to say. The red headed boy simply stood there and waited for what she was going to tell him. After a small sigh, she smiled weakly, let go of his hand, and made her way to the gate. She stood there for a moment and turned back.

"Good bye"

_Isabella… what were you going to tell me…?_

_**14AmyChan: dun dun DUUUUN! *^_^***_

_**Phineas: wait… what?**_

_**14AmyChan: you'll see later. *^_^* Please read and review~!**_


	2. CH 1-The Missing

_**14AmyChan: okay, so here's the background a bit, hope this helps set up the store some~! *^_^***_

_**Phineas: *reads* what..?**_

_**14AmyChan: I don't own PnF~! *^_^***_

Seventeen year old Phineas Flynn awoke with a start, drenched in sweat, his heart pounding, and his eyes wide. It took a moment before he could regulate his breathing and take a look at the clock beside him. It was roughly five in the morning. As good a time as any to wake up on a Friday morning during summer vacation.

Without missing a beat, the teenager swung his legs over and got out of bed, then arranged his blankets so they were made. Next he got dressed in a dark orange hoodie and navy blue jeans. He wore black tennis shoes that had definitely seen better days. After combing his hair then mussing it up again to deem it acceptable and brushing his teeth, he turned to his computer and flicked it on. There, he resumed his search.

His dream last night had more than startled him, it reminded him that she was still out there. His dream had actually been a memory. Of his last day with Isabella Garcia-Shapiro. Later that night, she had been kidnapped from her own home. Vivian, her mother, had spent a year and a half searching for her daughter before she was finally told that it wasn't likely she was alive anymore. The strangest thing about the kidnapping was there was no ransom. No contact from the kidnappers stating their demands. Except for a note that had been left behind. In scrawl-like handwriting, the barely legible note had only stated that she was being taken to a better life, and that it would be wise to forget that she ever existed.

Of course, no one could have forgotten her, least of all her family and friends. Phineas himself had helped head the search parties, not stopping for sleep unless forced. A year and a half had been like that. When he was eleven, in August, the police had come and talked to her, telling her it would be best to let go. It would have been another three months before she finally did. She let go and had tried to move on. Linda and Mrs. Johnson often went over to her house, just to get the woman moving on some days.

On the day that they had declared Isabella gone, Phineas hadn't been able to take it. He had spent a week in his room, allowing nobody but Ferb to come in, and that was only because they still shared a room and he had every right to come in. For three weeks, Phineas had tried to move on, but he couldn't. He still believed she was alive. Though their inventions hadn't worked—for those were the first things they had tried—he still had hope that she was alive somewhere. What he didn't have much hope for was the state of her living. She could have been hurt, beaten, abused, the list of worries he had was endless.

And thus, he continued the search. Every time he had thought it was hopeless, that he wouldn't find her, her smiling face came back to him, and kept him looking. There was a feeling he couldn't explain that she was still out there, still needed to be found. So he kept searching.

Every morning for the past six years—for that's how long she had been missing—he would wake up to a nightmare of some kind or another; get on his computer to make a scan of the hospitals, waiting to see if Isabella would show up among the names; then make a drive around the tri-state area to check in with the amnesia patients. Sadly, none of them were her. So he kept looking.

At around seven in the morning, when Phineas had finished his cyberscan, Ferb knocked on the door. Not needing to be invited in, the green-haired Brit opened the door to his brother's room. He had moved to Candace's when the girl had married Jeremy and moved out. He smiled softly, attempting to get his brother to do the same.

"So, any big ideas for today?" Ferb asked, though he knew his brother probably wouldn't respond as he had when they were children. Because Phineas had gone through a few changes when Isabella was reported missing, Ferb had assumed the role of the talker, communicating how his family was doing and offering reports to his friends on how Phineas was. Needless to say, he had to become comfortable with talking fairly quickly.

Phineas looked at his brother and once again thought of how unfair he had been to him. Yes, Ferb missed Isabella as well, but he had also been able to accept that she was gone and move on. Because of Phineas, he had been unable to completely move on and had to stay to help his brother with his seemingly unhealthy obsession. The red head sighed and ran a hand through his hair before getting up and walking to the door.

"You know exactly what I'm going to do today," Phineas said sadly as he walked down the stairs and out the door. Ferb turned and stared at his brother sadly.

"Phin, you can't search for her forever," Ferb pointed out somberly. Phineas stopped for a second before turning back to face his brother. A look of complete seriousness covered his face, and steel determination on his eyes.

"I can, and I will," the red-headed teen stated. He couldn't just let her go.

"She's gone, Phineas," Ferb said as he came down the stairs. He stood right in front of his brother, his eyes pleading with him to see some sense. "She's gone and she can't come back."

Phineas wanted to believe his brother, and at the same time he didn't. He wanted to stop having this need to look for her, yet he couldn't shake the feeling that she needed him somewhere. He wanted to live normally, and that came with the knowledge that normal meant having Isabella near.

With that final thought, Phineas turned and walked out. A few minutes later, the car's engine could be heard revving down the street. Ferb sighed sadly. Though one could not see it, the boy cried internally for his brother and for his friend. To him, they were both lost.

* * *

Phineas came home at around seven thirty, his rounds complete and empty handed once again. He walked into the kitchen to see that Linda had already sorted the mail by who was receiving it. Hers and Lawrence's were the smallest, and Ferb's was the largest. Phineas had only a few letters come for him nowadays.

"Phineas, you got some more offers from colleges," a voice came from behind. Phineas turned to see his mother putting away some of the dishes with a worn smile. She had had a taxing day, and he knew it, so he nodded. He stacked his letters neatly and was about to go to his room when she called again.

"Phineas," she called, turning him around with her voice. Her smile was wavering, and he knew it broke her heart to see him like this. That fact alone broke his own heart even more that it was. "When can I see my baby smile again?"

Deciding that he needed to do something, Phineas returned and gave his mother a small smile. She then reached up and gave her son a hug, which he returned awkwardly. After a few seconds, he let go and withdrew to his room. Linda stood there and watched, then heard the door quietly click shut. A stray tear streamed down her face.

_When can I have my baby back…?_ she wondered silently as she turned back to the dishes.

_**14AmyChan: okay, so that's chapter one~! *^_^***_

_**Phineas: o.o**_

_**14AmyChan: okay, so I may not be able to update as well as I usually do. Something happened and now my life's really hectic, so I hope ya'll don't hate me!**_


	3. CH 2-The Letters

_**14AmyChan: okay, so here's the next chapter, it's a little jumbled, so my bad. ^^;**_

_**Phineas: why is it jumbled?**_

_**14AmyChan: because this is where the plots kick in.**_

_**Phineas: plots?**_

_**14AmyChan: I don't own PnF~! *^_^***_

Phineas had shut his door quietly, in the hopes that no one would come and disturb him. It tore him up inside that he could not move on from her, and yet he could not find it within himself to move on. Sighing in frustration, the teenager quickly sifted through his pile of mail that consisted of colleges, letters from friends, junk mail, and a few odd envelopes.

The college letters were placed to the side, just in case there was something he wanted to look into later. Colleges had used to line up at the door for him to come, but upon seeing how he had turned out, had higher hopes for Ferb instead. Phineas was glad for his brother about all the colleges being interested in him, but the boy had already made and solidified his own plans about the future.

Junk mail was tossed unceremoniously into the trash bin. Advertisements and the like used to intrigue the Flynn and give him ideas, but no longer. Now they simply went out with the trash.

Phineas had received five letters addressed to him in different handwriting. Two of which he recognized instantly as Baljeet's and Buford's. He decided to open Baljeet's first, curious as to how the student professor was coming along. Enclosed in the letter was a small tassel from the Polytechnic institute of the Quad State Area, Baljeet's to be precise. The letter told Phineas of all the scientific advances his friend had made and the students he was helping to teach. Though a routine letter that his friend sent just to make sure he was okay, the thought of the letter made Phineas smile. He was glad that his friend was already on a pathway to a career he would love.

Next was Buford's letter. For his junior year, the bully had studied in an exchange program, living the past year in France. He would be coming home in Monday, and the letter expressed both the anticipation of coming home and the sadness of leaving a year's worth of memories behind. However, Phineas could tell the boy was adjusting to coming home, because his handwriting was slowly but surely becoming messier. Just as it was when he left. The thought of Buford coming back into town also brought a weak smile to Phineas' face. He had missed his friend, and was grateful that he was coming back home.

As soon as he was finished reading them, Phineas stacked the letters together and placed them with the rest. He had a small pile of letters from his friends that he kept around, just to assure him that life could still be lived when he finally got over all of this. He turned back to the strange letters in black envelopes.

Curiously, the boy opened the first letter, but upon seeing the elegant "You're Invited!" writing across the top of the letter, set it off to the side. He did not have the time to go to a party. Not with keeping his grades up and searching for Isabella. He reached for the next letter and opened it. It was very simple, yet chilling at the same time.

_Pick the first one up, you're not done._

Phineas looked at the note, confused. He looked out his window, then turned the short memo over. Nothing was written on the back. As much as he tried to suppress it, his curiosity began to mount. After a split-second's worth of waiting, Phineas found the original letter in his hand once more, only this time he read the entire page.

_"Dear Phineas Flynn,_  
_I hope this letter finds you well, though I do doubt it highly. I know of your long search and am compelled to ask how you pursue such a daunting task when all others have veered away. Nevertheless, that is not my intent for now. Suffice to say that you are invited to my home for the annual celebration of my daughter's birth. It would be serendipitous if you would reply with the utmost speed with an affirmative response._

_Awaiting reply,_  
_ D.I.G._

Phineas flipped the letter over, only to find nothing on the back, and then reread the front. Several things about this letter seemed just a little off. First, why would the letter open talking about his "daunting task"? He assumed that it meant his search for Isabella. Though curious, he was fairly sure that everyone in the Tristate Area knew of his long quest. Still, why open with it?

Then there was the word "serendipitous". It was a word that Phineas himself had used as a child and had known exactly what it meant as a child. However, the word did not seem to flow with the rest of its sentence at all. It was almost as if the word was written just to be written. But why would that be?

Last, but not least, there were the initials. Usually, a person would sign their full name unless they were writing to someone close who would know their handwriting. But these initials and the handwriting were completely foreign to Phineas. He had no idea who this was, though the writer obviously knew him.

Phineas looked at the envelope to see where the letter had come from and was shocked to find it was from the West Coast. From Santa Ana, California, in fact. Now he was really confused, not to mention a little worried. Why would someone from the west coast even know he existed? Much less his search for Isabella…

Still creeped out by the last letter, Phineas brushed it aside and reached for the last. Unlike the last two, the handwriting on this one was obviously written slowly in order to be neat. Almost as if it were someone who did not want their handwriting recognized. Phineas opened the last letter, and staring him in the face were six words he wished were not stringed together in their particular order.

_Do as you're told, Phineas. –L.A.F_

Phineas tossed the letter aside, his mind whirling a thousand directions at once. Why would he write? He had not for the past sixteen years of his life. And what did he mean by _"Do as you're told"_? Do what? And why did he think that Phineas would do whatever that man wanted?

All these questions buzzed through the young mind all the way through dinner and until he was getting ready for bed. Still having no answers, he decided to sleep on it. Taking the letters that were still on the bed, Phineas placed them in order on top of his desk so he could look over them again tomorrow. As he went to sleep, several questions burned in his mind. As he finally succumbed to his subconscious, the most prominent was of what he was to do next.

_**14AmyChan: okay, so it's really scattered and I'm sorry if it doesn't make much sense. ^^;**_

_**Phineas: Who are D.I.G. and L.A.F.?**_

_**14AmyChan: you'll figure all of that out later~! *^_^***_

_**Phineas: awwww… *sadface***_

_**14AmyChan: To un-sadface Phineas, please R&R~! *^_^***_


	4. CH 3-The Decision

_**14AmyChan: okay, I'm trying my hardest to update with good chapters, so I hope this kinda works out~! *^_^***_

_**Phineas: she doesn't own my brother, me or any of the Phineas and Ferb characters**_

_**14AmyChan: If I did, there would be a whole lotta problems…. XD**_

_A one year old Phineas was startled awake. He glanced around his dark room, searching for the source of the noise that had awoken him. Finally, he was able to pinpoint the whimpering of a dog just beyond the door to his room. Candy was still asleep, and he didn't want to wake up Mommy and Daddy, so he simply got out of his crib himself, unlatching the gate that Mommy used to pull him out of bed and making his way to the floor._

_As soon as he was out, the toddler took tentative steps to his door. Though he wobbled, he was fairly sturdy on his feet and soon found what he was looking for. The family dog, Bucky, was sitting in a corner, as if hiding from something. Phineas, just wanting Bucky to feel better, simply grins and wobbles his way over to the dog. Once there, the child lost his balance, and promptly collapsed into the dog's fur. The entire thing seemed so silly to the child that he let out a quiet yet delighted giggle._

_Soon, thunderous footsteps could be heard coming up the stairs, followed by the rushed pitter patter of his mother's running. Before the child could do anything, Bucky had promptly hidden the toddler behind his furry back, quaking all the while._

"_They're both in bed," a determined Linda tried to persuade the man at the top of the stairs, rubbing her arms. Phineas peeked over the dog to find that his Mommy was rubbing her arms. He vaguely wondered why they had purple handprints on them. Maybe Mommy and Daddy were playing with finger paints?_

_It was then that Phineas noticed that Daddy's eyes were puffy, like Mommy's were when she had been crying. Trying to make Daddy feel better, Phineas quickly made his way out from behind the dog and beamed brightly. Mommy had said before that a smile can go a long way._

_But Daddy didn't seem too happy. His face contorted into one of displeasure and his lips pressed themselves into a fine line. He took a few steps toward Phineas only to be stopped by Linda's hand on his shoulder. Phineas hadn't seen his parents to upset before, and his smile faltered. Linda seemed to notice and gave her son a warm smile._

"_It's time to go back to bed Phineas. Go back to your room and Mommy will tuck you in in a minute," Linda said, her voice warm and sweet as honey. Phineas hesitated but for a moment, wondering if Mommy and Daddy were really all right. He looked from one to another, as if not understanding, though the meaning of the order was all too clear to the babe._

"_Do as you're told, Phineas," the man spoke, holding the child's door open. Feeling dejected, Phineas slowly wobbled his way to his room. When he had made it inside, the door behind him slammed shut, and the poor baby was sent headfirst into the floor._

* * *

Phineas jolted awake, once again fearful of a nightmarish memory. He covered his eyes with his hand. That was the night mom had thrown dad out. The boy had received a hit to the head, and it could have been worse, but the mere fact that a father had hurt his own son out of pure anger and frustration was the last straw. His mother had filed for a divorce two days after she had kicked him out. Candace had been confused for a while, but she had eventually understood and moved on with her life.

Phineas shook his head, clearing out the nightmare and focusing on what he needed to think about today. He glanced over to his desk only to find someone else sitting at his desk and reading the letters.

Ferb is reading all three letters carefully, scrutinizing over one before turning to the other, then turning back to each letter individually. Phineas looked to Ferb's side and noticed that the green haired teenager had already brought in a notebook and was taking notes on each letter. It had always helped Ferb solve problems to write out what he was thinking. Soon enough, Ferb turned around only to come eye-to-eye with his brother. He instantly seemed ashamed.

"Sorry, Phin. You weren't answering your door and you slept in, so I wanted to see if you'd found anything," Ferb explained concisely. He then looked back at the letters, his eyebrows furrowing themselves together in confusion. "But it seems as if something of a completely different matter has come out."

"I don't think it is, Ferb," Phineas contradicted. He got out of bed and began to prepare for the day, explaining all the while. "I was about to toss the first one out, when the second one told me to go back and re-read the first one. So I did and it was really crazy to read. I mean, who from out of the tri-state area knows I exist? Or even that I've been looking for Isabella for so long? And why send a letter just to ask me to come to some girl's birthday party?"

"You're a popular guy, Phin," Ferb supplied a simple answer, though both knew it was not simple a matter of popularity. There was more to it that that and they both knew it. Ferb picked up the last letter.

"What about this one? You know he could be around somewhere…" Ferb pointed out, noticing that Phineas had an uncontrollable shiver when that man was mentioned. Only this time, the young lad rubbed his head tenderly, as if it had been hit recently. He then shook it.

"That guy has nothing to do with me," Phineas said, a fierce determination washing over his eyes. "My dad is Lawrence Fletcher, the man who raised me and has been there for me my entire life. This guy has no right to come and try to talk to me now."

"But he thinks he does," Ferb pointed out, waving the letter as evidence. He looked at it again. "Phineas, why does this matter so much? We're not actually going to California, are we?"

The look in Phineas' eyes told him he had every intention of going. Ferb sighed. He should have known. Phineas began to walk around the room to start packing, starting with clothes and eventually packing away some tools that he could use to aid him in his search.

"And why, pray tell, are we going?" Ferb asked, already having committed himself to going with his brother, if only to keep him out of trouble. Phineas zipped his suitcase.

"Because I have a feeling that she's there, Ferb," Phineas said. He walked over to his desk and picked up the two letters by D.I.G. "I don't trust this guy, but there's a feeling that I can't explain, and it's telling me that she's there."

"But you do know that man could be there as well, don't you Phineas?" Ferb asked, simply assuring himself that Phineas was dead-set on his course. However, the boy stopped in his tracks, making sure that he knew what he was doing. Yes, that man could be there. He could hurt Phineas again, and therefore his family. If he got angry enough, he could even take it out on innocent passerby.

But if she were there… If there was a hope that she could be somewhere in Santa Ana, California… Phineas stood still and weighed his choices. Go to California to continue a six-year-long manhunt, or stay in Danville to remain safe. Phineas walked over and grabbed his suitcase.

"It's worth the risk, Ferb… _She's_ worth the risk," Phineas explained to his brother, his eyes pleading with him to let the boy go.

Ferb looked at his brother and knew it would be impossible—yes, _impossible_—to keep him in Danville. Also, he saw something that had slowly been dying for the past six years roar to life in his brother's eyes. Hope. And Ferb knew he would do anything to help keep the hope alive, even go the distance to California. The Brit sighed with a smile.

"Right, so when do we leave?" Ferb asked as he turned to begin packing. Phineas grinned—a true, heartfelt, genuine grin—as he ran up and hugged his brother. Ferb returned the hug, grateful to have some of his brother back.

"Ferb," Phineas announced as he let go of his brother and ran back into his room. He returned with an old blueprint and a few pencils. "I know what we're going to do today!"

* * *

A teenaged girl woke up to her sunny room. Her head began to pound heavily. Though she had always had that problem, it was slowly but steadily getting worse. Even more awful were the dreams. It was almost as if she had created an entire childhood for herself that she could not remember.

She shook the thoughts out of her raven-haired brain and proceeded to get ready for the day. It was so weird though… There was a kid with a funny head, another kid with funny green hair, and even a mother and a dog. But there couldn't be—

"Ana!" her father called from the kitchen downstairs, his call signifying that breakfast was ready.

"Coming, dad!" the girl responded before shaking her head, opening her sapphire eyes, attempting to ignore the pounding in her head, and walking out the door past a small pink dog bed. The beautifully embroidered name tag was blank.

_**14AmyChan: who is that man? Who is this girl? We still don't know who the initials are. Will I stop giving you cliffhangers?**_

_**Phineas: I can already answer that one**_

_**14AmyChan: but, alas, this chapter has drawn to a close and I humbly ask you all to kindly read and review~! *^_^***_


	5. CH 4-The Beginning

_**14AmyChan: I'm so proud of myself~! *^_^***_

_**Phineas: why?**_

_**14AmyChan: one chapter per day~! Great, now I think I've jinxed it…. -.-**_

_**Phineas: 0.o Amy doesn't own any of the Phineas and Ferb characters**_

"Well, Ferb, I didn't think I'd see this again…" Phineas smiled softly as he looked upon the Sun Beater 9001. Like the first model, only more sturdy. The two teenagers had just finished re-evaluating the plane and were packing their belongings into it when a certain red-haired woman stepped out of the back door.

"What do you think you're doing?" Candace Johnson asked, aghast. She had been called in once again by her mother to try and talk some sense into her little biological brother, only to find the kid up to his old tricks. While she was glad to see some of him back to normal, she was not _quite_ ready for the insane and dangerous contraptions the boys were sure to build on a day-to-day basis. Hanging onto her legs was a small four year old child. Little Amanda Johnson looked at the plane with big eyes.

"Mommy, it's a plane! Look, mommy!" the little girl cried, instantly detaching herself from her mother and making her way to her uncles, who had stopped what they were doing with looks of guilt as obvious as an elephant in the room. As the little girl looked at the plane with curiosity in her eyes, she squeed in delight. Candace ran after the small child and held her hand firmly, making sure she did not get too close to the plane and keeping a safe distance.

"We're going to look for Isabella," Phineas admitted, looking up at the plane. He placed a hand over the cool metal, reassuring himself that he was going to look for her. Even to the ends of the earth. Before he could vocalize his full intention, he felt a pair of unforgiving fingers pinch on his ear and march him straight into the house. He had no choice but to comply, and Ferb simply followed, guilty by association.

"Amanda, why don't you go play in the living room?" Candace asked as soon as she released her daughter's hand. The red-headed child pouted for a few seconds, then decided that there might be _something_ to do in the living room. It sure beats doing nothing.

"Phineas Brian Flynn, are you crazy?!" Candace turned on her brother as soon as her daughter no longer had the plane in eyesight. Phineas visibly cringed, but his sister was not through yet. She placed her hands on his shoulders to get him to look her in the eye. "What about your life here? What are you going to do about school? Did you even tell mom? 'Hey mom, I think Isabella's in some far off land and I'm going to go looking for her. I don't know when I'll be home'. Phineas, Isabella's service was four and a half years ago, why can't you just let her go?"

By now, Candace felt that she was going to cry. As annoying as her brother had been when they were younger, she could not bear living without them. At least Phineas had been in Danville physically, but now he was going to fly off in a contraption to find a girl who had already been announced dead. She wondered when the time of pain and anguish would be over. After a long silence, Phineas let his answer out.

"Because she's still out there and she needs me," Phineas answered, slowly taking his sister's hands off his shoulders. He still held them because he knew that she was upset, and that was one of the last things he wanted. So he smiled to lift her spirits. That small action caused the woman to see what she had missed when she saw him building the plane. For the first time in a long time, her brother was optimistic again. She could see he was beginning to believe in the impossible again.

"If I have a chance to find her, I'm going to take it," Phineas said resolutely. His sister looked him in the eye for a few seconds longer, then enveloped her brother in a rare hug. She held onto him firmly for a few seconds and then pushed him back with a frown.

"You have three days until your butts better be back home, is that understood?" the woman said sternly. Phineas nodded quickly and then hurried to make last-minute preparations with the plane.

"You're still worried," Ferb stated, not even a question. Candace looked at her stepbrother with a small smile. It was one he could see through instantly, and she knew it. She waved him over and gave him a hug as well.

"You guys can't stop me from worrying, just like I can't stop him from going," Candace whispered as a sign of defeat. When the two parted, they looked out back to find their brother staring at a piece of paper before folding it up and tucking it back into his pocket.

"He still holds onto that poster and looks at it every day," Ferb said as the red-headed boy began to move again, more energetic than before. Candace sighed.

"Just… make sure you guys don't get into too much trouble. I'll stop mom from asking questions over here, but only for three days," Candace told Ferb before going back into the living room to gather her daughter, who had found and was playing with a few of Candace's old Ducky Momo dolls.

"Why are you so sure you can't stop him from going?" Ferb asked, curious to his sister's reasoning. There was a time where she had threatened to chain the brother's down for April Fool's day once just so they could not prank anyone with their inventions. Though she had never carried through, the threat alone had kept Phineas in line the entire day. Candace chuckled.

"How do you stop a man driven by love?" Candace returned, making sure that Amanda was ready to go home. When they were set to leave, she turned back to Ferb with a serious expression. "Three days, then straight home."

Ferb nodded, showing that he understood. After one last hug and another wish to stay safe, the teenager joined his brother out back and made his way to the cockpit. When two of the three seats were filled, they were off into the sky, destination Santa Ana, California.

And yet all the way there, Ferb could not place the bad feeling he was getting about this entire ordeal.

_**14AmyChan: okay, so there's that chapter, hope you all liked~!**_

_**Candace: you said I'm Candace Johnson with a daughter named Amanda…**_

_**14AmyChan: I'm trying to be as cannon as I can. When PnF went 20 years into the future, there was a daughter and two sons. They didn't show the husband, but I'm sure it was Jeremy.**_

_**Candace: :D**_

_**14AmyChan: okay, so please read and review~! *^_^***_


	6. CH 5-The Plots

_**14AmyChan: okay, so I didn't update on the weekend, but I hope that you all forgive me with this long chapter~! *^_^***_

_**Phineas: Amy doesn't own me or my brother.**_

_**14AmyChan: onwards! *^_^***_

After roughly fifteen minutes of flight, Santa Ana came into view. It was not a balmy beachside town, but rather an American city with a few Mexican touches. A few of the buildings were close enough to touch from their plane, while others lay peacefully on the ground below. Children played ball, teens walked the mall, and grandparents relaxed in spite of it all. After circling the city a couple of times, Phineas pulled the plane into landing in the middle of an open marketplace.

Once the plane had made a safe landing and the passengers had dismounted, Ferb pulled out a small spherical object that somehow pulled the plane inside its small self. Upon a curious look from Phineas, Ferb tucked the item away with a smile. "It's bigger on the inside," was his only answer. Phineas shrugged and seemed to accept it while walking to the marketplace. Ferb placed a hand on his shoulder, a question as to where he thought he was headed.

"I'm going to ask around, see if anyone's found her," Phineas explained, to his brother's chagrin.

"We have to find a place to crash first, and then we can look for her," Ferb said, pulling his brother along for the ride. The red head was most displeased with this course of action.

"Why don't I just look around and you can find the hotel?" Phineas asked as he was dragged along. Ferb gave him a look that made his brother wither, but not falter. Ferb sighed.

"Fine, then I'll find a room with two waterbeds and—"

"What?!" Phineas exclaimed, horrified. He then shook his head. "No way! You wouldn't do that!"

"I would," Ferb declared as he released his brother. He began walking away from the marketplace, not entirely sure if his brother would follow. Two seconds later, a grumbling Phineas was at his side, complaining about horror movies. Ferb grinned. He missed messing with his brother.

* * *

"Hola, mi hija," a man called from the dining room. Said room was spacious, and furnished with only the best. While it was extravagant, it had an air of simplicity to it. The table only sat three, and one seat remained empty all the time. Beautiful paintings of the Spanish countryside hung around the room, with styles ranging from realistic to abstract. The man sat in one seat of the table, and the other was already pulled out in anticipation for the other resident.

Said resident was a teenage girl with long black hair tied into a loose ponytail with a dark pink bow. She wore a loose pink shirt—cool enough for the weather yet modest enough for her father, a white skirt, and an odd belt that hung around her waist. It was white, yet had orange glitter on it. When asked why orange, she simply said it made her feel better, and a glare from her father would convince anyone to drop the subject and move on.

"So, Ana, I was thinking you would want to go to the marketplace today to gather some things you would want for your party tomorrow night," the man continued with his eyes still scanning the paper before him, much too fast for anyone to have actually read the material.

"All right, dad…" the girl replied, though her voice showed that she was not entirely there. Her father looked up from his paper in time to see a few tears fall down her face. Her eyes burned with a fire that he had not seen in a while, and he acted quickly. He folded his paper in half before placing on the table and rushing to envelop the girl in a hug, softly stroking her hair and shushing her quietly, waiting for this little spell to end.

The fire in the girl's eyes died slowly, and a blank look enveloped her face, followed quickly by one of confusion. There were no trace of tears and she looked up to the man, a weirded out look on her face. She gently pushed him away.

"Dad, why are you hugging me?" she asked, a light laugh in her voice. The man's face quickly melted into relief as he chuckled.

"What, a father can't hug his own daughter anymore?" he asked. He then returned to the table and picked up his paper, as if nothing had happened. "Why don't you go to the marketplace and get some things you need for the party tomorrow?"

"Great idea, dad," the girl announced as she snatched a piece of toast from her father's plate. She smiled at him for a second. "I'll go get my purse and then be back around seven, okay?"

"All right, mi hija. Stay safe!" he called as she left him. He waited for the front door to close, and then sighed as he watched his daughter make her way down the street and around the corner from his place at the window. He laid his paper down flat and placed a shaky hand on his face.

"Ay… How long is this going to last…?" he asked, looking at the papers before him. Papers of the abduction of Isabella Garcia-Shapiro, receipts for a kidnapping, and a phone number for L.A.F., only to be used in emergencies. He supposed it was an emergency as he reached for his phone.

* * *

"Are you bent on getting in my way every time I try to do something?" Ferb huffed, his patience thinning. This was the third time Phineas had gotten in his way while pacing. The teen had just taken his clothes and stuffed them into a drawer, and then had proceeded to pace the room impatiently.

"Sorry, Ferb," Phineas muttered as he sat down. It was not long before he was back up and pacing again. Ferb nearly face palmed when the red head got in his way yet _again_. Realizing there was only one way to not run into the boy, Ferb dropped the items he had on his bed and opened the door. Phineas looked at him curiously.

"Go look for her, but don't go bringing a lot of attention to yourself, understood?" Ferb stated as he pointed out the door. Phineas grinned and hugged his brother before rushing out the door. Ferb shook his head as he continued to hook up his computer. If he could only start a scan of the area around him, he could try and make the search a little easier…

* * *

Phineas made his way back to the marketplace in no time flat, and then pulled out his missing poster of Isabella. Seriousness enveloped his face, mingled with hope and excitement. If he could find her here, then…

"Hello, I'm looking for someone," Phineas called out to the first person he spotted, a kindly looking older lady with a yellow dress and fluffy white hair on top of her hair. She squinted through old eyes and wore yellow flip-flops. He showed her the picture and explained that it was an old photograph of her. The woman smiled in recognition.

"Ah, that looks like dear Ana, only much younger," the woman smiled and Phineas' heart fell. He wasn't looking for some girl named Ana. He was looking for Isabella. Nevertheless, the young man thanked her for her time and looked around for someone else to ask.

"Excuse me, have you seen this person?" Phineas asked another person, a girl around his age. She had pixie-length blonde hair with jeans and a tee shirt. She had flip flops on her feet and a jacket that had definitely seen better days around her waist.

"Looks like Ana's little sister…" the girl mused, squinting through her glasses. Once again, Phineas felt disappointed. He thanked her for her time and walked around the marketplace some more, still asking around if anyone had seen the girl from the picture. Some said they had never seen her before, while the rest kept coming back to this Ana person, whoever she was.

Towards noon, Phineas was beginning to feel frustrated. He turned around abruptly and was surprised to find someone behind him. Even more surprised when he accidentally ran them over and ended up tripping over himself. He quickly got back up and turned back to help the other person to their feet.

"Sorry about that, I wasn't paying attention," Phineas apologized quickly, and then noted that a purse was on the ground. He reached for it, and handed it over to the other person, completely floored when a pair of familiar sapphire blue eyes were looking into his own.

"That's all right, I was in a bit of a rush, too," the girl accepted her purse with a smile, but nothing more. She looked through her purse to make sure that nothing fell out during the fall. Satisfied, she looked back up to the boy who had accidentally knocked her over.

"Isabella?" Phineas finally asks dumbly. He's about to envelop her in a hug when she giggles softly, shaking her head.

"No, close, though. My name's Anabella, but everyone calls me Ana for some reason or another. I always liked Bella better," she corrected him, jutting out her hand. Phineas took it, still feeling shocked. She had said her name was Ana, so it wasn't Isabella, but something seemed a bit off. For some reason, he still wanted to believe it was his Isabella…

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Ana asked, her eyes narrowing suspiciously. Phineas gathered enough brains about him to explain.

"Sorry, you look a lot like a friend of mine that I'm looking for…" Phineas explained, leaving out the ever-so-tiny fact that he had been searching for six years. Ana didn't seem to mind, though. In fact, she looked interested in what he had just said.

"Really? What did you say her name was?" she asked. She wondered if she had some kind of evil twin running around somewhere. Regardless of the situation, that would have been funny. And she would really like to meet someone who looks a lot like her.

"Her name is Isabella," Phineas answered, reaching for the missing poster. Maybe if she saw a picture, then she would be able to help. As he was about to show her, though, he saw that she wasn't focusing on him anymore. In fact, it seemed as though she were staring at something behind him. Curiously, he turned around, but saw nothing that she probably didn't see every day. The mountains were a nice view, though…

He turned back to Ana and hesitantly waved a hand in front of her face. It took about three seconds before she realized that he was still in front of her. She seemed startled, then smiled embarrassedly.

"Oh, sorry about that, Phineas," she began to ramble before catching herself. She glanced up at the red headed boy curiously. "Why did I just call you that? Is that your name?"

"Yes, yes it is," Phineas replied, just as curious and confused as the girl beside him. While his head told him to go and look for Isabella, something kept him there. A curiosity, a nagging at the back of his mind that said that this was her. He made a split-second decision.

"So where ya goin?" he asked, tweaking Isabella's line a bit. Ana's eyes fog over a little bit, but she comes back to sooner than last time. She smiles brightly.

"My birthday's tomorrow and mi papa asked me to go get some things for it," Ana explained, nearly bubbling over with excitement. She looks Phineas over again, and wonders why she has an insane urge to hug him, right then and there, and not let go. She shook it off, but decided that she would like to hang out with him for a while.

"Would Isabella mind if I borrowed you for the afternoon?" Ana asked, not wanting to be rude to this Isabella girl. They were probably going to go on a date or something, but Phineas shrugged.

"I think she'd be okay with that," Phineas answered, vaguely hearing an echo of "okay" in the background. He turned around and wondered if Uncle Bob and Aunt Tiana were in the area.

"So I'm not the only one who heard that?" Ana asked, a sigh of relief coming. Phineas looked back to see her laughing. He cracked a smile. Man, she even _laughed_ like Isabella…

"Yeah, that's my uncle," Phineas admitted, and Ana's eyes widened. She then got a mischievous grin on her face.

"Let me guess, his name's Bob and you've got an Aunt named Tiana," she giggled, as if it were the most absurd idea on the face of the planet. Phineas just stood there for a moment, and when she inquired as to what was up, he admitted that those were indeed their names.

"That's cool and creepy at the same time…" Ana finally admitted, her eyes coming out of focus once more. Phineas began to wonder if this were a daily thing with her. Her foot taps as if to a long forgotten song. Then it stops and she snaps back to reality with a smile.

"So, are we shopping or what?" she asked, holding his hand and pulling him along. While some part of him told him to keep searching for Isabella, the irrational part of him that had convinced him to start searching in the first place was telling him to stick with this girl. But why? Who was she really?

* * *

"Are you sure this will help her?" Ana's father asked nervously, pacing around the enclosed area. There is one window to allow ventilation, and a concealed door that not even his little girl could find. It was for the best that she didn't know about this place, or even the man he was talking to.

"Why do you doubt me all of a sudden?" the other man's voice feigned hurt playfully.

"Because you said she wouldn't remember anything!" the first's voice would have reached the street had this room not been soundproof and the window closed for now. The man tried to take deep breaths to calm himself, yet that only succeeded in making him more nervous. "I could lose her again! Do you realize what's at stake?"

"There is more at stake than your daughter…" the voice said slowly, menacingly. The man of the house stops and stares at the other in the room, for the first time fear evident on his face. All is still for a moment, the tension slowly ebbing away for one of them. Said man then taps on the wall rhythmically.

"Just trust me… everything is going to be fine…"

_**14AmyChan: dun dun DUUUUN!**_

_**Phineas: we're pressed for time, so please just R&R**_


	7. CH 6-The Revelation

_**14AmyChan: okay, so this took a while to write out**_

_**Phineas: actually, what happened was that she was typing this in class and the bell rang. :)**_

_**14AmyChan: Phineas!**_

_**Phineas: *runs from 14AmyChan:**_

_**Ferb: Miss AmyChan does not own me, my brother, or anyone else pertaining to the actual cannon show. Please sit back and enjoy the story.**_

"Hey, Ferb, I'm back," Phineas called as he walked into the hotel room. Beside the door, Ferb's computer was in the middle of some kind of program, but the teenager himself was reading some kind of note. Curious, the red-headed Flynn turned to read over his brother's shoulder.

_Dear Phineas (and Ferb),_  
_I am delighted to know that you are both attending my daughter's party tomorrow night, given your presence in town. I know mi hija will be delighted. The theme for the party is thieves, and it is entirely interpretive. Come as you wish, a thief of money, of land, of hearts. I look forward to meeting the Flynn-Fletcher Duo._  
_Ever anticipating,_  
_D.I.G._

"I thought I said not to gather too much attention to yourself," Ferb recalled as he faced his brother, passing over the letter for a closer inspection. He crossed his arms and patiently awaited an explanation.

"I didn't," Phineas replied, curious as to how this D.I.G. guy knew he and his brother were in town. He began to feel as though a lot of people knew about the two brothers, despite the obvious geographical difference. "I was asking around to see if anyone had seen Isabella when I ran into someone?"

"Really, who was it?" Ferb asked, turning back to his computer. In reality, his mind was connecting the dots that he would have to share with his brother later. If Phineas had not drawn any attention to himself like he had said—and Ferb trusted his brother one hundred percent—then that meant the two brothers were being watched. But who would want to watch the two, and for what reason?

"There's someone in town who looks a lot like Isabella, but she calls herself Anabella. She acted like she didn't even know me, but she knew a lot, even Uncle Bob and Aunt Tiana," Phineas explained. Ferb's fingers stopped typing and his brother had his full attention. It was extremely curious, almost too simple… "That's not even the weirdest part, when we split up, she told me to tell you hello."

"So you told her that both of us were in town?" Ferb asked. Though he wondered if this girl could have tipped off the man who had sent the letter, Ferb doubted it. The letter had come in three seconds after Phineas had left. Though Ferb had tried to find his brother to tell him about the letter, the boy had been long gone by that point. To answer his question, Phineas shook his head.

"I just said I had to get going and then she said "next time you see Ferb, tell him I said hi,"" Phineas relayed. He stopped and looked out the window overlooking the community. For a moment, he was still, then walked to his bed beside the window and sat down, pulling his knee up to his face so he could think.

"She seemed like she was really out of it most of the time, though… It's like being with that professor who forgot he'd left the kettle on," Phineas analyzed, knowing Ferb would know what he was talking about. After all, he had picked the phrase up from his British brother. Phineas scrunched his eyebrows up in concentration.

"I dunno, Ferb…" Phineas mumbled as he stared out the window. It had begun to drizzle slightly outside. "There's something else going on here…"

* * *

"Dad, I'm home!" Ana called as she shut the door behind her. Upon hearing no response, the girl placed her decorations and food down, and then briefly looked around the house for her father. He was not in the library, the kitchen, the dining room, or even his own room. She had locked her room when she left so there was no way he could be in there. It was a habit she had kept since she was little. Lock the door and no one can come in. For some reason, she never liked her father being in her room.

With her search being fruitless, Ana decided the best thing to do would be to begin decorating the place without him. The first thing she did was put away the party food, which mainly consisted of sushi. She did not know why, but for some reason many of the girls who had befriended her loved the stuff. So she made sure to keep stock on her birthday.

Just as she was about to pick up some of the decorations and get to work, she stopped. A memory was tugging at the back of her mind, wanting to be seen yet not having the strength to come out. She reflected back on her shopping trip. It had been like that for the entire trip. It was that boy, Phineas. Whenever he had said something, or done something in just the right way, the feeling had always been there. As if she was forgetting something important.

She walked up to her room and unlocked the door, then made her way straight to the dog bed that she owned and picked it up. For some reason, she had pleaded with her father three years ago to get it, and it had taken a month before he finally caved. Though she did not own a pet, the little dog bed had always made her smile. She traced her finger over the empty name tag. She knew that a certain name was supposed to go there, but whenever she had tried thinking about it too hard, she had come up blank. After the day she had today, she was sure that she would be able to remember. She took a deep breath and attempted to think.

Finally, a memory burst through. It was not much, but something did happen. She had been around eight or so, a couple of years before she had come out of her depression about her mother's death. That was the reason she was not able to remember much of her past. Her father had told her that after her mother had died when she was five, she had gone into trauma-induced amnesia, and had forgotten everything before then. The first thing she could remember was it being mid-January when she was eleven, and she asked her father why there was no snow.

This new resurfaced memory consisted of her looking down at something on her chest. It was an orange sash, similar to her belt. Though her belt now had orange sparkles and the sash was solid orange with a few circular patches on it. A small, tan Chihuahua yipped excitedly around her ankles and she could hear herself giggle. The next words she said were muffled, but then she heard another voice and looked up in shock. There was a Mexican woman, talking a mile a minute, gushing about how proud she was of her _hija_ and what a great leader she would be in the Fireside girls.

That was the entire memory, and Ana shook her head and sat on her bed. Her mind filled with questions. That dog was so familiar… she was sure she had named it after one of her fingers, but she was unsure as to which one. As for the woman, she had a connection with her. And since she had been calling her _hija_, daughter, then that meant the woman was her mother. Yet if she were around eight in the memory and her father had told her that her mother died when she was five, then which was the liar, the memory or her father?

Deciding that she needed to find her father and sort the entire mess out with a few questions, Ana once again made her way through the house. When she at last made her way to the library—her second-favorite room in the house—she still had not found him. She was about to turn when she felt a breeze mess with her tied up hair. She looked at it curiously. It would take little more than a gentle breeze to move it, but this room had no windows. Wondering where the breeze was coming from, Ana turned around and entered the room again.

She ran her finger over almost all the books, unsure of what she was looking for. However, she knew she found it when she heard a giant creak and the sound of wood scraping against the floor. Suddenly not wanting to be caught in the same room with her father, Ana ducked and hid behind one of the reading chairs, a comfortable couch that her father had insisted on buying for her to keep her comfortable.

She heard voices as well as two pairs of shoes, then the scraping of wood against the floor again. She held her breath and tried to listen in on what the voices were saying.

"If you knew this was going to happen, why wouldn't you tell me?" Ana's father hissed. This was not the first time she had heard him afraid, but never had she heard him this angry. She wondered what was going on.

"This wasn't supposed to happen until later in the summer. Her memories are surfacing quicker than I anticipated, but I'll fix it…" an unfamiliar voice said. It was smooth, yet at the same time chilling. Like a river that looks calm on the surface, only to hide the jagged rocks underneath.

"But Isabella—"

"Remember, her name is _Anabella_ now," the voice interrupted, and her father did not speak up again. The two finally crossed to the other side of the room and left, leaving the girl to freak out silently. How many secrets had her father been hiding from her? And was he even her father? As she stood up, she wondered what was going on and instantly made her way to the back of the library. There was nothing there except for a few musty books on some old raggedy bookshelves. Nothing there at all.

After waiting for a few minutes, she left the library and made her way back to her room. She relocked the door and sat on her bed. She pulled out her phone and texted her father.

_Hi, dad_,  
_Had 2 go back 2 stor. 4got some streamers. Wht you think if I dont come in costume?_  
_bby grl, Ana_

The girl winced as she typed that last word. "Ana" was not even real. "Ana" was a name given to her by some other person to keep her from remembering her past. But why? And what was her past? Why did they have to get rid of it?

Feeling the need to write everything out, the teenage girl got out her journal. Her father did not know she had it, and the only reason being was because it was personal, and she simply did not want him to read it. She opened up to the first page, the one about when she asked her father why there was no snow, when she realized something about the front cover. It was bulging a little bit. It was not painfully obvious, but just enough to catch her curiosity. Quickly, she managed to pull something out of the cover. It was two pieces of paper. She unfolded the first and found it to be a diary entry.

_Dear Diary,_  
_This is a mistake, I don't belong here. I miss home, I wanna go home. Home with mama and Phin… I miss all of them, everyone. I want home!_  
_These guys are trying to get me to believe that this house is where I belong, but it's not! I belong home, with mom and Phineas and Ferb and the Fireside girls! I miss messing with Buford. I even miss Baljeet's helpless flirting! But it's really scary how… No, I won't think about that. I've just got to find my way home before they manage to break my will down!_  
_Missing home and finding an escape route as soon as possible,_  
_Isabella G.S._

As she finished reading this desperate letter to herself, the teenaged girl felt moisture from her eyes. She could not quite remember what she found scarier than the rest of her situation, but the situation itself and the reality of it finally sunk in for her. Desperate for the truth, she opened the second piece of paper, and staring her in the face was a crudely drawn picture.

At the center of it was a girl with black hair. On her right was a taller woman with wide hips and bouncy black hair, her mother. On her left was the boy with a triangular head, flame-red hair, and a striped shirt. That was Phineas. On his left was the boy with green hair and much to say to an audience that would more often than not ignore him. Ferb. Beside him was one boy in a black tee shirt holding up a boy in blue overalls. Though she did not quite remember their names yet, she yearned to see all of them. Hear their voices. Make sure this was all real, because the life she was living now certainly was not. It was then that it truly sunk in for her.

The past six years of her life had been a carefully constructed lie.

_**14AmyChan: okay, I gotta admit, a lot of people saw that coming.**_

_**Phineas: but a lot of people probably wanted to see how me and Ana/Isabella hung out during the day**_

_**14AmyChan: I may or may not make a oneshot about that later... but for now, on with the show~!**_

_**Ferb: please kindly formulate your opinions into legible text and place them in the review box, submitting them so they may become the fuel that Miss AmyChan uses to propel herself forward in her writing.**_

_**14AmyChan: Please read and review, guys~! *^_^***_


	8. CH 7-The Unraveling

_**14AmyChan: okay, I know I'm late, but I have a good reason!**_

_**Ferb: She got an assignment during class**_

_**14AmyChan: yeah, and they tend to last a few days, soo...**_

_**Isabella: AmyChan doesn't own Phineas, Ferb, or myself. The rest she can claim**_

_**14AmyChan: except for the town of Santa Ana... I can't claim that. Enjoy~!**_

"And you're sure it's Isabella?" Ferb asked once more, trying to ascertain the truth for himself. Having not seen the girl yet, the logically based Brit was still skeptical. Especially since his brother was still battling himself on the subject.

"No, I'm not," Phineas answered for the umpteenth time, shuffling his hands through his hair. He had wrestled with this all night long and was still getting nowhere. His head and his heart were still wrestling with each other. His head told him that it was pointless to look for Isabella, and even if he would keep looking, what made this girl her? On the other hand, something in his gut and his heart told him that the girl he had hung out with yesterday was the very same that he was looking for, only with something very wrong.

"In any event, we still have a party to go to tonight, and I don't believe we packed to be thieves…" Ferb mused, once again checking through his clothing for something that wouldn't get him kicked out of the party. He had only brought what he normally wore, and no doubt Phineas had done the same. Said red head groaned.

"Does this mean I have to go back shopping?" Phineas complained, having already seen the ridiculous prices the Californians demanded for their goods. They had not brought a lot of cash so he had no wish to buy anything in that marketplace, yet the look on Ferb's face forced him to come along.

"Do you want to see if she really is there, or was this entire trip for naught?" Ferb asked when they finally made it back to the marketplace. Phineas sighed, then stood up straighter. He led his brother into the nearest men's clothing store they could find and watched his reaction to the crazy prices.

"This is insane!" Ferb cried out, once again checking the price tag for a simple shirt. The sound of his voice and his heavy accent brought some attention to the two brothers, and Ferb shyly kept his mouth shut. Just because he had become accustomed to talking did not mean that he was accustomed to people staring at him for it.

"Told ya…" Phineas muttered. He made his way to the clearance rack in search of something that would make him appear as if he were a thief in the night. Given it was summer in California, the store did not have a lot to offer. Just as he was about to give up, he found something. It was an outfit that looked as if it were from a cops and robbers movie. Even better, he could get it for practically pennies. The only downside was it was an outfit that came with a hat, and Phineas would have none of that. He grabbed the clothing and went to find his brother.

"Hey, Ferb, I think I found—" yet as Phineas turned to see his brother, his hand flew to his mouth to stifle a laugh. At least three girls had encircled the British teen, asking a million questions a second. He had his hands up, as if in surrender or defense—though Phineas supposed the latter—and did not seem nearly half as amused as Phineas was. Finally, the boy could take it no longer and let out a laugh. He laughed so hard, he finally caught his brother's attention. Finally having a valid reason to excuse himself, Ferb bid the ladies goodbye and made his way to his brother, shoving him gently when he arrived.

"Oh, shut it…" Ferb muttered, unimpressed yet amused by his brother's reaction. Phineas took a few more seconds to calm down, and finally wiped a tear from his eye.

"I don't think I've seen you that uncomfortable since—" Phineas was cut off by Ferb's hand.

"I thought we were _not_ going to discuss that again!" Ferb hissed, unintentionally making the girls he had left giggle. Even his ears burned bright red. He shook his head as if to clear a bad memory, then found the outfit Phineas had already picked out. With a grin, the green-haired teen nabbed the hat and shoved it on his brother's head. He then laughed as his brother pried it off.

"Ferb!" Phineas complained playfully, successfully taking of the hat and chucking the soft material at his brother. They both had a good laugh until a stern-faced man came up to the both of them.

"If you're not going to buy something, then please leave the store, or I will have to call the police," the man stated bluntly. Phineas and Ferb exchanged looks, then they both grinned. This was the first time they had gotten in trouble at a store. Most people from Danville knew the two, and they had played in stores often. Oh, well, the rules were different in California.

"Actually, I'd like to buy this," Phineas responded politely. Upon receiving a disapproving frown from the man, Phineas quickly made his way to the nearest cashier to buy his costume. Ferb followed closely, somehow receiving a tux in the process. Both boys were surprised, but shrugged it off, deeming that someone might have given it to him.

As the boys left, they could have sworn the girls were saying something about a tux and a party. While Phineas brushed it off, Ferb just felt plainly creeped out.

* * *

"Man… they were persistent," Phineas huffed, just having finished running around the marketplace three times with Ferb. It was around noon and the boys were tired from having fled from crazy new fangirls. Not having the breath to say anything in return, Ferb simply nodded. The boys then stood up straight and looked around. They were currently hiding in an alleyway, but when they saw no girls around, they deemed it safe to at least go get a cup of coffee to go.

The two scoped out their chosen destination before finally deeming it safe and making their way in. The coffee shop had obviously been there a while, and no fashionista shopping crazed fan girls were there. With sighs of relief, Phineas ordered a double chocolaty chip double blended frappechino, and Ferb ordered a green tea frappehino. They sat in the far corner, awaiting their order to be called, as two older ladies came in. Already scarred by the overly warm welcome of the younger generation, Phineas and Ferb did everything they could to be inconspicuous. And it worked.

"That poor dear… remember when she came to town? Quite a dust that settled up," one of the older ladies said, as if drifting back through the years. She then jolted to reality long enough to order her drink and listen to her friend's reply.

"I know, the dear girl kept asking me to go home. But whenever I brought her to her house, she would always say "not here, not here"," the other woman replied, obviously engrossed with what she was saying. The two were loud enough for the boys to hear, and it had caught their attention.

"Did you ever ask her what she meant by that?" the first asked as she received the receipt and led the way to a booth that was diagonal from the boys'. As the two sat down, the second elaborated.

"I did, but then she would say that she couldn't remember… I think the poor dear was making things up in her head," the second replied, shaking her head. "And then she would burst into tears. She kept repeating the strangest little words…"

"Like what?"

"Oh, it's been quite a while since that… let's see… itchy ditchy new? Something like that… and she kept talking about a boy and her mother that she had to get back to…"

"Oh, the dear probably didn't know what she was saying…" the first said empathetically. Then a bright smile came on her face. "But it's amazing how time flies. Six years later she's got to be one of the most beautiful girls around..."

"Oh, how our little Ana Garcia has grown... Have you got her birthday present yet?" the second asked as Phineas and Ferb's drinks were called. Not wanting to cause a scene by not grabbing their drinks, the boys paid and left the store quickly, already having ascertained that no rabid fan girls were after them.

It was a few moments before the silence was broken, but not by the questions raised by the conversation they had overheard, or even their own voices, but by something new entirely. It was the quiet hum of a car, trailing behind them. Ferb noticed first, and nudged his brother gently to get his attention. After a few subtle gestures, the other was also able to tell that the car was following them.

The two made a slow circuit around the marketplace once more, still avoiding the areas where fan girls were sure to be waiting. The car did not speed up or slow down. It kept an even pace with them at all times. When they turned, the car turned the same. When they stopped, the car would throw itself into park and wait.

"So what are we going to do about it?" Phineas asked under his breath. With rabid fan girls and now a mysterious car behind them, was there anyone in this strange town not trying to hunt them down? The two soon found another convenient alleyway, much too small for their stalker to follow. As the car passed, both boys strained to attempt to identify the driver, but to no avail. It was someone they had never seen before.

"What's with this crazy town...?" Ferb asked as they made their way back to their hotel room. Phineas began piecing his thought together as fluently as he could.

"Well, at least we know that Ana is Isabella..." Phineas stated before Ferb cut him off.

"And how do we know that?"

"When she was younger, she kept singing Gitchie Gitchie Goo, and she kept telling that lady that she wanted to go home, but she never was..."

"But she should have known that her home was Danville. What could have made her forget so much, but not raised any suspicions with the people who were already living here?" Ferb asked blantantly, still needing more proof that this girl—Ana—was indeed their lost childhood friend.

"Large scale hypnosis is only a theory, but it's still in the realm of the possible," Phineas speculated. Then he asked another question. "But who would want to kidnap Isabella and bring her here, only to give her a new life in a place she didn't belong?"

"Perhaps it was her father?" Ferb threw the idea out there. Phineas contemplated it before shaking his head.

"Isabella told me that her father ran off when her mom got pregnant with her. Not even the rest of the family knew where he went; only that he was running away from his pregnant girlfriend..." Phineas explained as they walked into the hotel room. "Somehow, I don't think the man who ran away from his unborn daughter would have her kidnapped only to erase her life and start over fresh with him..."

Ferb simply stared at Phineas before the red head finally caved.

"Okay, yeah, that can be a motive... but why then? And how could he have had her memories buried so well?" Phineas asked, plopping on Ferb's bed (which was closer to the computer) while the green haired Brit sat down in front of his laptop.

"Children become more independent at age ten, they don't rely as heavily on their parents as when they were around five. And yet they still depend on the parental figure to shape their lives and provide for their basic needs, all while still exploring the world around them for themselves and beginning to think for themselves," Ferb explained as he finished his quick research on the subject, simply to prove that what he was saying was not something he had just concocted in his head.

"So he didn't want to have a clingy baby around, but he wanted to have a baby girl?" Phineas asked, scratching his head, then shaking it. "That makes no sense at all!"

"Regardless of motive, if this is really Isabella, then it would have had to have been her father, anyone else would have probably—"

"I get it, no need to say that!" Phineas cried, placing his hands over his ears. For the past six years he had nightmares of the cruelties that Isabella could have gone through at the hands of a merciless stranger. Somehow, knowing that it was her father that had kidnapped her did not make the situation any better. Then, a thought struck out to him. He grabbed the two original letters and pulled them out.

"So... If Isabella's father is the one who kidnapped her and made all this happen, then he had some ties to Danville... If he still had those ties, he would know about my search for Isabella... But if that's the case, why is he throwing me a line now? After so long why am I being brought here now?" Phineas questioned. He looked at Ferb, the Brit being as confused as he. Slowly, an idea formed in that red head of his.

"Ferb, just how effective is the hypnosis theoretically?" Phineas asked, knowing his brother would take less time to find the information needed. In approximately a minute, the young lad had found an extremely radical theory on the stages of hypnotic-induced amnesia and its effects.

"This is fairly interesting," Ferb mused, well aware of the situation they were in, but also impressed by the content of the page. "It says that based on the experience of the hypnotist and the susceptibility of the hypnotized, the effects can last anywhere from one to ten years. We know how Isabella was about being told what to do, and she would have been scared, so whoever did this to her was a professional."

"That's just great," Phineas moaned. He flopped back on the bed and wondered how smart Isabella's father really was. Yet something didn't match up for the red head. From what Isabella had heard from her mother about her father was that he was a good man who just got scared easily. Someone like that should not have been able to put together an elaborate scheme like this...

"It also says that when the person comes out of hypnosis, they could have a variety of different reactions. They could be scared, confused, and some even become depressed," Ferb continued to read from the page. Upon the word "depressed", Phineas shot up like a rocket.

"For how long?" the red head asked, keen to hear the answer.

"It's as they come out of hypnosis, when it begins to wear off. The depression should kick in about a week before they actually remember anything," Ferb answered.

Phineas' mind raced. A man who got scared easily and ran away from his pregnant wife. Phineas began to try and see things through this man's point of view. It was entirely possible that—given his personality—he did not believe he could raise a child. And then when he wanted to see her, he could have been scared that she would not want to see him, thus the hypnotist. He could have wanted to see his daughter, and wanted her to want to see him. The only question is, who would the hypnotist be? Who would be so stupid as to agree to help this man? Unless there was something bigger in it for the hypnotist?

"D.I.G. must have known how important you were to her," Ferb mentioned, closing his tabs and erasing his internet history, just in case anyone got any funny ideas. "Whenever she was really upset at anything but you, you were the one to do something amazing to pull her out of it."

"Yeah, but you helped her out more than me, sometimes," Phineas shrugged, wishing he could go back and help his friend some more. Ferb got up and walked to his brother, then promptly smacked him on the head.

"Hey! What was that for?!" Phineas yelled, glaring at his brother and rubbing his head. He had never done well with anyone messing with his head, and it wasn't because of his triangular shape, either. Ferb knew that, and he had still hit him in the head. Good thing it wasn't in the exact spot where he had hit his head as a baby, otherwise the boy would have been out for a little while.

"It's been six years and you still don't see? You went without her for six years, trying to find her and get her back? Why did you do that, Phineas?" Ferb looked like he was about to explode. In reality, he was. He wondered if Phineas had spent all that time looking for her, why was he doing it? Why did he waste away his years looking for someone everyone thought was dead? Was he really that thick?!

"I did it because I love her, Ferb!" Phineas admitted. He had come to the conclusion subconsciously a few years ago, when he realized that he holed himself in his room on her real birthday, and didn't leave the tree on the anniversary of her kidnapping. He had realized it was more than just grief or obsession, but he couldn't label it. Until put under pressure by his brother. Phineas looked down, his face beet red.

"Look, I know it didn't really look like I cared too much when we were younger, but Isabella always has meant so much to me. She was taken away, and it took a long time for me to realize why I couldn't just let her go. So yeah, I fell in love with an old neighbor who probably doesn't love me back, even back then..." Phineas said. He had said it all, getting that entire burden off his chest. Even his insecurity that she would ever love him back. He couldn't see Ferb face palm.

"So... once she remembers about Danville...about all of us... do you think she'd want to come back?" Ferb asked. It was the one unspoken question that neither wanted to think about, least of all Phineas. The boy stared at the clock and—upon seeing that the party would be in an hour—came to another rushed decision.

"I think we'll just see how this goes. We'll talk to her during the party and let her choose..." Phineas answered slowly, rubbing his head. He took his new outfit into the bathroom to change, leaving Ferb to think. About how his brother had somehow matured enough to grasp the concept of love and letting go, and also about the grand scheme that could be behind this entire party.

To Ferb, it seemed as if there were more than meets the eye.

_**14AmyChan: okay, so the two super smart boys are unraveling the mystery layer by layer~! *^_^***_

_**Phineas: I think this is all just confusing...**_

_**14AmyChan: but I had fun writing it. Now come on, you little thieves~! It's time to go to a party~!**_

_**Ferb: *in a suit and tie* Miss AmyChan wishes that you would read and review this particular story, and leave your most sincere opinions**_

_**14AmyChan: btw, doesn't he look great in a suit!? XD**_

_**Phineas and Ferb: -.-**_


	9. CH 8-The Party

_**14AmyChan: okay, I feel like a really bad person for not updating in so long, so I really tried with this chapter. I tried super hard!**_

_**Phineas: well, this is where the scene from that picture is.**_

_**14AmyChan: yup! So maybe now you all will forgive me? No? ^^; okay...**_

_**Isabella: Amy does not own Phineas, Ferb, or myself. Or even the city of Santa Ana!**_

_**14AmyChan: and to phinbella-luvr22, thanks for letting me use your questions~! *^_^***_

Phineas and Ferb looked at the grand building where the party was being held. Mexican in style, the two story house seemed a blend of Mexican heritage and American wealth. The party was already in full swing by the time the boys arrived, and guests either had on black jumpsuits, tuxes, or short dresses. They boys looked at each other, shrugged, and made their way into the house, intent on finding the birthday girl.

"She could be anywhere in this house, Ferb," Phineas said as they made their way through the crowd, their eyes peeled. They were both thankful no one had seemed to notice them, too wrapped up in their own conversations.

"The best we can do is to—" Ferb was cut off by several girls clustering around him at once. Uncomfortable and annoyed, the polite man tried to get himself out of the situation, but was only met with a bombardment of questions.

"Excuse me, but is your hair natural or dyed?"

"Are you supposed to be a mysterious man who steals hearts? Cause I think it worked!"

"You're hot!"

"Can I date you? Pretty please?"

"When did you come to America?"

"Was that accent fake?"

"Are you related to David Tennant? Oh, wait, he's Scottish…"

During the midst of all of this, Ferb had managed to push Phineas out of the circle of crazed fan girls. Before losing eye contact with his brother, the green-haired Brit had sent a look that most obviously meant "keep looking". Rather than laugh at his brother's misfortune in being the ladies' man, Phineas decided to continue his search. Word of Ferb's arrival spread quickly, and many of the rooms were either empty or had a couple of boys, laughing about some joke or another. Phineas would have liked to be friendly, but he was on a search and find mission.

Before he knew it, he had found himself upstairs, looking around. He had found the bathroom, the main bedroom, a few spare bedrooms, a library, and was now opening a door to see if he could find what he was searching for.

The door led out onto a balcony, and a gentle breeze had kicked up. Phineas closed the door behind him as he let the wind muss with his hair and let out a frustrated sigh. He reached into his pants pocket and retrieved the poster of Isabella from his pocket. When she had first gone missing, after the inventions, they had mass produced flyers, alerting everyone of the fact that Isabella was gone, and asking them to be on the lookout. It had her name, a number where information should be directed, and a picture of the young girl herself, standing in the grass with a smile on her face. Phineas remembered that day as the start of a big idea that had never been put into completion. Yet he had all the pictures from that day, so it had been all right with him.

A strange new breeze kicked up from behind him and pushed the paper out of Phineas' lax grip. Rather than worry about the new wind, the boy's only concern was to retrieve his paper. However, the sheet was soon carried out of sight and whisked away into the night. Hoping to find it again, Phineas turned to go back inside, only to find he was not alone.

"Ah, you dropped it right in front of her. Good," a cool voice spoke, sending the boy in shock. Not the kind of shock when you have just seen someone you have missed terribly, but rather the other kind. When you have seen something that has come out of your worst nightmare.

* * *

Isabella (she now referred to herself as such because it seemed a crime to keep up the name of Ana) had left the party and encircled the house twice, thinking. She had lived in this grand home for the past six years, never questioning, never thinking, never even doubting for a second that this was where she belonged. Now that there was proof of otherwise, she did not know what to think or do. As she passed the rose bushes on the side of the house a third time, she stopped to pick a rose. It was something her father allowed her to do when she was upset.

That was another thing. Her father. Deep in her heart, she knew that the man she had lived with for the past six years was indeed her father, but from whatever new memories she could dredge; her mother had not said one bad thing about the man. She had always waited for him to come home, even setting an extra place on the table in the event that the man decided to come back. From her mother's stories on his character, Isabella would have never imagined him doing something like this.

Needing to think this through, Isabella rounded the corner of the house and made her way to the bench that was in the back. She sat down and began to peel some of the thorns off of the rose in her hand. After thinking about it all last night and even through the entire day, she was able to tell that she was Isabella. She had been able to put names to most of the people and places in her memory. She had lived in Danville; her best friends were Phineas, Ferb, and her Fireside Troop. Baljeet had been a nerdy boy with a crush on her that—even though she had had her memories taken away and returned to her—she would still not date. Buford had been the neighborhood bully with a soft spot for the French, fine arts, and a certain French Fireside girl. She was still uncertain as to which one, though.

Her mother had been her moral support, always there when things got hard or when she felt as if her patience were too thin. Her dog, Pinky, had also always been there. A friend to play with, to feed, and to care for. Now that she remembered her small but happy home setting, she missed it terribly. Though one of the thoughts that disturbed her was whether or not anyone other than Phineas believed she were alive.

If this were the case, should she even go back? Would they have already made their peace only to have a ghost from the past come back as if nothing happened, though that alone was far from the truth? Thinking about all of this, a slip of paper came down from the air, and landed in the grass about five feet away from her. A personal habit of hers to not see any trash lay uselessly on the ground, she walked over to the slip of paper and picked it up, ready to throw it in the trash when the content caught her eye.

It was a missing poster, with her name and a number to contact. It was obvious the paper was old, folded, creased, and otherwise worn with time, yet the simple fact that someone would hang onto it for so long meant that someone had not given up hope, right? She looked around eye level to see if anyone had dropped the paper. A loud groan drew her attention upward.

Two figures with triangular shaped heads were on the banister up above, a banister that Isabella had forgotten about, yet that was of no consequence now. One of the figures—the one who had let out the groan, Isabella assumed—was slumping over the side of the banister, only to be hefted up by the second. In the dim light, Isabella was able to tell that the limp one being held was Phineas by his messy red hair.

She would have wondered why he was there if the second had not caught her eye. Dirty blonde hair that looked as if it had been attempted to be combed back failed miserably at staying in place. His face was harder with more wrinkles, evidence of late nights and multiple worries, and a deeper frown than Phineas could ever pull off. Then there were the man's eyes. Cold, hard, and grey, the eyes were cold and calculating, with very little to no feeling behind them.

Isabella was able to make these observations before the elder man whisked an unconscious Phineas inside. A new flurry of questions bombarded her mind, accompanied with a defensive anger that had not burned in years. With determination, the teenaged girl rushed into the house, commenting politely and excusing herself through when necessary in order to get upstairs. She raced around the house, each spare bedroom, the balcony, the bathroom, the library. Yet the two could not be found.

They had vanished.

Unwilling to take no for an answer, and certain Phineas would not have come alone now that she knew who he was, Isabella returned to the party, hoping to find a newly familiar face. And find it she did. Well, the back of one, anyways.

"Ferb!" Isabella cried out, easily parting the sea of fan girls, behind the Brit. Upon feeling some relief at his back, he began to slowly back away from the multitude of girls, only to run into another. He prepared mentally to be attacked by more questions, only to be met with silence. Even from the other girls. Ferb turned around, wondering what miracle could have gotten the girls to stop. He was not expecting what he saw.

"Ferb? Hello?" Isabella asked, waving her hand in front of the boy. Well, boy was not quite the word to describe him now. He had grown at least a foot or two, and now towered above her, the ratio being larger than when they were children. However, the girl knew she was short on time, so to help the Brit think, she sent the others away, telling them of the chilled sushi in the fridge. With the girls gone, Isabella turned once again to Ferb, who had been caught almost attempting to poke the girl, his jaw slack.

"You... you're... Ana?" Ferb asked, remembering what his brother had said about a girl who looked like Isabella. Only now could Ferb understand why his brother had such a hard time discerning fact from fib. The girl looked exactly as Isabella would have, had she grown up in Danville. Except for her clothing choice, which had varied due to the climate. He was surprised when the girl shook her head.

"I thought so... but now I think that I'm Isabella. I've been getting memory flashes of Phineas, you, Baljeet, Buford, the Fireside Girls, my mom, my home... I wish I could explain everything, but I don't have the answers, and now Phineas has been kidnapped and I don't know where they went and—"

"They?" Ferb asked, instantly in his epic British super sleuth mode. To him, it was just deep thinking in order to find his brother as soon as possible.

"Yeah, Phineas was being carried off by a man who looked a lot like him with dirty blonde hair and grey eyes... and a watch..." Isabella's talking suddenly trailed off, her eyes darting every which way, trying to gather a memory before it escaped her. Ferb waited with bated breath as he did his own thinking. It was obvious that the man wanted Phineas now, but why? And how long had the man been planning on the young man's capture?

"We need to find someone," Isabella said instantly, making her way through the crowded kitchen and then around to the front room where Ferb still was. "Well, I'll need your help. I can't stop him if he tries to run," Isabella sad urgently, getting the man of action into action.

"Who are we looking for?" Ferb asked as he helped Isabella search the rooms. She then opened a door and darted inside. Ferb followed her closely, only to find her chasing down a man easily a foot taller than her with the kind of fire that would only come from Isabella Garcia Shapiro. The man fled around the room and tried to bypass Ferb as a last-ditch attempt to free himself from the wrath of the teenage girl. Unfortunately for him, Ferb was not about to let that happen.

As the man was about to pass, Ferb grabbed his collar and yanked him back inside the room, then accidentally knocked him on his rear end. The man made no motion to move after that. He simply sat there, too scared to move an inch, especially when Isabella stared him down.

"Daniel Garcia, are you kidding me?!" Isabella asked, the tone of her voice making the man wince.

"You're so cold to me now..." he said softly, causing Ferb to bristle. _This_ was the man who had orchestrated the kidnapping of one of his best friends, causing a several-year-long manhunt headed by his brother, causing said boy to be doubted by many of his friends and almost overtaking his entire life. Were it up to him, he would have headed yelling at this man, yet he never had the chance. Isabella was already on it.

"I was stuffed in a dark and dank room for 'treatment' for about a year so that creep could get me to lose all my memories. I almost went mad in there, all so you could talk to a daughter who would have already talked to you anyway! Mom, too! She wanted you to come home, she always left a place for you, she even called me Isabella, just like you wanted!" Isabella ranted at the man. When she drew for breath, he interjected quietly.

"But...she hates me now, he said that she would rather die than see me again, and that she didn't want you to see me. So I let him..."

"Let him?" Ferb asked, catching on the diction. Something was not fitting. He thought for a moment, then another question presented itself in the Brit's mind. "Daniel, how did you know about Isabella's life in Danville if you weren't there yourself?"

"He said he had already been there for a while. He said that it was sad that a child should grow up without their real father, and he offered to get my baby girl back for me," Daniel admitted slowly, obviously seeing the way Ferb's fist was flexing. It was a simple habit the boy had picked up when thinking, and he would not dare hurt a fly, yet Daniel did not know that. So he told the two what he knew.

"He said that all he wanted in return was my trust and patience, that everything would be fine and I would be able to live with my daughter and raise her and watch her grow into a fine young woman. That's all I wanted, honestly!" Daniel recounted, wringing his hands nervously. Isabella was about to retort when Ferb beat her to the punch.

"If you wanted to watch your daughter grow up, and not have to send her back to Danville and be separated, why did you send Phineas those two letters?" Ferb asked, his mind and knuckles working again. Isabella looked up at Ferb in bewilderment, then back to her father, her sapphire eyes demanding an answer immediately.

"...he said that the boy would make her smile again..." Daniel finally admitted, hanging his head low. "She'd been waking up in the middle of the night, sobbing in fits from nightmares, or memories, I don't really know which. I wanted her happy again. He said that the red headed boy would be able to make her happy again. I thought if she saw him again, maybe at her party, then she could be happy again..."

"What about the second letter and L.A.F.'s letter?" Ferb asked, only to be met with a curious gaze from the man. "And you wrote the letter that we got when we came here?"

"I only sent one letter, and I wrote what I was told to. The others were from him. He said that if I wrote it the way I did, then the red headed boy would come and make my hija smile again. I did not realize that you would come as well, and I thought that if another friend of Isa's from when she was a child came as well, she would be even happier, so I did not tell him," Daniel said. "The letter you got when you arrived was written by myself, and I attempted to keep the same style as the first, though it was very difficult."

"So that means the other man doesn't know that I'm here, whoever he is," Ferb said, grateful to have some kind of advantage in just his presence. Yet there was still one question left unasked that could probably be answered now.

"But who is he? He's the man who hypnotized me? The man with the blonde hair and grey eyes, right? Who is he?" Isabella asked, wanting to root out the truth as quickly as possible. Daniel's quivering chocolate eyes met with Isabella's steely sapphire ones before shifting to Ferb's impossible violet ones.

"His name is Loic Flynn. He is the slipperiest fish in the ocean, and more cunning than any fox I've known," Daniel revealed. He told the children of how Loic had approached him, telling him all the information he could have wanted on his baby girl. He admitted that with this information came a newfound desire to see his daughter that he had abandoned, yet that also came with the heavy burden in knowing that Vivian might not want to see him anymore. Scared, he had turned to his new friend for help. Seemingly delighted to be of assistance, he had struck a bargain with Daniel, telling him he would be able to raise his daughter and live in peace, so long as allowed Loic to be nearby in case something were to happen. Daniel, too terrified to back out of a deal with this man, kept his word for all these years, never truly understanding what the man had in mind for so long.

"But now I see that he used me and mi hija to get to this young man. I still cannot understand why, though..." Daniel wrapped up, just as a muffled _bang_ was heard from a few rooms over. Fearing the worse, Ferb was already en route to the source of the sound, hoping against hope that they had not wasted too much time gathering information.

_**14AmyChan: I know, I'm evil, but I think the next chapter should come out more quickly than this one, unless in the course of unforeseen circumstances.**_

_**Ferb: *grabs 14AmyChan's hand and makes her knock on wood***_

_**14AmyChan: ^^; well... hope ya'll read and review~! *^_^***_


	10. CH 9-The Vilian

_**14AmyChan: okay, please don't hurt me! I had to change some stuff around in this chapter. Though it didn't come out the way I wanted, I tried to make it epic!**_

_**Phineas: how is this 'epic'?**_

_**14AmyChan: because it's got action? *^_^* anyhoot 'n holler, I don't own PnF~! *^_^***_

_**Phineas, Isabella, and Ferb: Thank goodness…**_

Phineas aroused slowly, unsure of his surroundings. Attempting to understand his situation, he shook his head, attempting to dismiss his drowsy state. As his thoughts became more coherent, he began to think about how he got here. He had gone to the party, searched for Isabella, made it to the balcony, lost his poster, turned around, and then…

"Finally awake, are you?" a voice spoke, causing the red headed teen to become much more alert much more quickly. He attempted to stand, only to find that his hands and feet were bound in rope to a wooden chair. Phineas would have been unimpressed with the lackluster setup were he not trying to escape it.

"What do you want, Loic?" Phineas spat, watching carefully as the man made his way around the dark and dank room, picking up and choosing supplies as he went. Supplies for what? Phineas had no clue, but he did not believe they could have been good.

"Really, one would think you would show your father a little more respect… Especially a boy as well behaved as yourself," the man said lightly, still inspecting his appliances as if they were gardening tools. Phineas yanked on his bindings, attempting to free himself.

"You're not my dad," Phineas said sternly, still wriggling his hands against the wooden chair and his rope. In his effort for freedom, he did not notice something as subtle as the other man's hands, which had tensed upon that statement, then forced themselves into a relaxed position as he continued to browse through his items.

"On the contrary, I provided you with half of your chromosomes. Without me, you would not exist. But you already knew that… or are you more stupid than what I was told?" Loic asked testily, finally picking up a silver pocket watch. Phineas struggled with the deceptively tight bounds even more.

"Any jerk off the street can donate some chromosomes, but it takes a man to be a dad. I've got a dad back home, and you're not it!" Phineas argued heatedly, somehow stopping Loic in his tracks with only his words. The man's mind worked, and his hand clenched itself around the pocket watch as a fist.

"That can't be true… She couldn't have married again…" Loic muttered, his voice becoming more dangerous with every word. However, tone escaped Phineas' notice as he managed to have a miracle breakthrough with the rope. He had managed to snag a small amount of rope concerning his left hand just right on the chair, having the rope beginning to fray. In an attempt to keep Loic distracted from his progress, Phineas piped up yet again.

"She could and she did. To someone who said he'd treat her right forever and meant it," Phineas jabbed. In the fraying the rope just a little bit more, the young man's subtle glee eclipsed the equally subtle rage that the elder man was giving off. However, the subtly did not remain for long, and Loic acted quickly out of his rage. He dropped the pocket watch, not caring that it fell and several parts came out of the old contraption upon impact, and quickly stalked up to the red head in the chair, wasting no time in grabbing fistfuls of his collar and pulling him up to eye level.

"I swear if I didn't need you for the business, I'd have killed you by now!" Loic growled, feeling no remorse as he shoved the chair onto its side, causing the boy within to be jarred. Were he not completely bound in rope, the impact to his head would have caused a concussion at the very least. However, as soon as Phineas regained his wits, he used them to comprehend what the man had said.

"What do you mean 'business'? Why do you need me here anyways? How did you even know I'd be here?" Phineas asked, still attempting to jerk his hand out of its constraint. If he could only pull his hand out, he could get to work on the other bounds. The rope loosened a smidgeon more from the fall, and the boy used that to his advantage.

"The business is classified to those who aren't in it," Loic answered the first in his own way, dusting off his shirt as if nothing had happened. He turned back to his pocket watch and attempted to gather the missing pieces together. "After you don't remember any of this, you'll be initiated as my doppelganger, doing what I say when I say it without question or fail."

"What, you just want me to do what I'm told?" Phineas asked skeptically. As he worked on his left hand, he was able to pull it out to his knuckle, and was quickly able to release his fingers after that. He quickly began to work on the rope binding his right hand, making more progress in less amount of time.

"When I'm through with you, you won't know any different," Loic answered cryptically, though Phineas had already put the pieces together when the man started fiddling with that watch. An old-fashioned technique, of course, but in the right hands, a simple pocket watch was a hypnotist's greatest advantage. He managed to find the knot that held his right hand and began to undo it as quickly as he could.

"How did you know I'd even be here?" Phineas asked again, rushing through his attempt to free himself. Loic had just finished picking up the pieces and was walking away, giving the young man some breathing room.

"I engineered it, obviously," Loic explained as he dumped the broken pieces of the watch into a nearby trash bin. He stood there, seemingly in flashback as he relished his success. "I orchestrated the kidnapping of Isabella Garcia-Shapiro when you were eleven to let you simmer on anger and frustration for a few years. Then I sent you a few letters and to pipe your curiosity. In the marketplace I managed to have someone keep an eye on you. When I was informed of all those girls starting to swarm, I thought you might get… _distracted._ So I called in a couple of the Garcia's _dear_ neighbors for a little chat. You know those elderly types. They just love to talk and talk and talk… So I let them, right into the coffee shop. Honestly, I thought you would be smarter than this, from what I've been told. Being around that stupid family and even dumber friends must have made you an idiot over the years…"

The binding on Phineas' right hand slowly fell to the floor, yet it went unnoticed by either of the two. Loic because he was still facing away and could not hear the rope slither to the ground. Phineas because his heart was pounding in his ears. This man had not just dared to insult his family and friends in front of him. He could not hear the man's continued rambles about how he would finally have the son he had always wanted, about how he would give this perfect son everything. None of that mattered. His family and friends had just been insulted, and he would have none of that.

"They're not stupid, and my friends aren't dumb," Phineas said quietly, his building anger not allowing him to speak any louder. Regardless of volume, the man heard it, and turned around to taunt once more. Unable to even see that his prey had been freeing himself, Loic came closer to jeer in the young man's face.

"Then would you care to tell me—"

The man never got to finish his sentence, for right then and there; Phineas had reached up a hand and pulled down on the collar of Loic's shirt, causing the unprepared man to tumble headfirst into the ground beside the chair. Phineas was about to hightail it out of there when he realized that he had not had released his feet. In response, the normally agile teen's nose hit the ground hard. While he was grateful it was not the crown of his head—which probably would have done more than just make him see pretty spots for a while—he realized that he had to free his feet, and quickly.

As he was about to pull his feet, and thus the chair, closer to him in order to free himself, a jerk yanked them backwards again. It took no time for Phineas to deduce that Loic had the chair, which was never a good sign. Before the man could carry through in his plans to hit Phineas in the back using the chair, with or without the boy's feet attached, the red headed teen made a sudden jerking to the side that ripped the wooden furniture out of the man's hands and sent it crashing into the floor.

While the chair was now not as sturdy as it once was, it was still in once piece, and the boy's feet still attached. However, the bindings were now weakened as well, and Phineas found he could move his ankle out of the fastenings a little bit. Before he could work on releasing his feet, however, Loic had recovered and was on his way to grab the chair yet again. Phineas managed to swing it out from underneath the man, sending him in a comical chase for the chair. After two additional failed attempts, the man finally pounced on the chair and kept it in one spot.

With all the swinging, however, Phineas' right foot managed to free itself, and now slipped out of the rope with ease. Quickly, the young man began to pull his left foot while kicking at the chair with his right, all the while jerking himself away from his captor with his arms. Noticing what the young man was doing, Loic attempted to reach down and grab his swinging leg. What he got was a powerful kick to the arm, and he quickly retreated. With a final kick to the chair, Phineas' left foot was released, and he quickly got to his feet.

Now freed from the chair, Phineas attempted to make his way from the room, the only problems being his lack of light around the unfamiliar room, and the fact that there was now an angry psychopath in the immediate area. He felt around the walls quickly, ducking and avoiding Loic's incoming blows as best he could. Within no time, the young man was already sporting multiple bruises yet nothing too serious from the enraged man. In retaliation, Phineas sent a powerful kick into the elder's chest, and then shoved him far away as his arms would let him. That move bought him a few seconds, time which he decided to use wisely.

Phineas' hands searched the wall, begging to find a window, a ladder, or—

A doorknob! It was too good to be true. Phineas jiggled the knob to open, but the door refused to budge. The boy pushed and pulled on the knob, turning it and twisting it as hard as he could to find release, but to no avail. Before he could figure out how to open the door, a large force shoved his shoulder into the door, resulting in a loud, resounding _BANG!_

Pain shot up through Phineas' shoulder, but the young man attempted not to concern himself with that now. However, the slight delay in reaction gave Loic the perfect opportunity, and the man pulled Phineas away from the door and sent him to the ground, once again banging the young man's head. He tried to shake it off quickly.

"Am I the only one getting sick of hitting my head?" Phineas muttered as he attempted to stand too quickly. However, he was not quick enough as Loic sat on the young man's stomach, preventing motion and winding him.

"Yeah, pretty much. I find it funny," Loic smiled sadistically, the wrinkles on his face becoming more pronounced. He searched his pockets for something, and his smile quickly disappeared. A small glint from the other side of the room caught both of their eyes, and Phineas almost laughed at the irony. Loic had captured him, but the pocket watch he needed for hypnotism had fallen out of his pocket on the other side of the room!

Hoping surprise was on his side, Phineas made to roll out from underneath the man's weight, which was more than meets the eye. Loic was startled out of thought for a moment, and then was shoved unceremoniously off the boy who had built so much as a child and traveled often as an adult. As Loic tumbled to the ground, and then decided to dive for his watch, Phineas returned to the door. He searched for the doorknob he had found earlier, only to find the edge of the door. He bared his good shoulder and hit it as hard as he could, attempting to break down the door. The structure gave a little and then bounced back, as if it were a door that was being opened the wrong…way…

"That's just what I need right now!" Phineas complained as he scrambled for the knob again. It was a door that he had to _pull_ open, not push. However, as he had finally grazed a finger on the knob, a rough hand pulled him back and flipped him onto the wall. A fierce pressure seared at his injured shoulder, and the boy yelped loudly in pain. Before he could get over it, the man kept his hand on Phineas' good shoulder and moved his other hand to the boy's throat.

"It would be more difficult, but I can still make you obey!" Loic muttered frantically, more for his own benefit than the boy he was choking. "There are ways to plant suggestions into the subconscious—"

A brilliant bright light caught Loic off-guard, and he quickly moved his hand to shield his eyes. Taking his chance, Phineas pushed the older man away and darted into the light, where three figures stood, beckoning him closer. Though he did not recognize one, the other two he trusted with his life. And they had just saved it.

* * *

Ferb pulled the bookcase into its original spot as soon as Phineas came through, hoping to trap the insane excuse for a man within. When he was about to let go, the book gave a tremendous shudder and began to groan backwards. All four of them grabbed the case and pulled in order to keep it in place. Ferb glanced at his brother, hoping the boy could think of some kind of plan to get them out of there.

"Phineas, what's going on?" Ferb asked, truly assessing his brother for the first time. There were a few bruises on his face, some markings on his neck, and there was something obviously wrong with his left shoulder. He pulled as hard as he could with his right hand.

"It was him all along… He kidnapped Isabella, he hypnotized her, and he's after me next," Phineas explained briefly, his mind racing to come up with a plan that would get help there as soon as possible and without getting anyone hurt or starting a panic.

"And what do we do now, Mister Flynn?" a voice completely unfamiliar to Phineas asked from behind Ferb. Peeking around, he saw a Mexican man with a pronounced forehead and black hair, complete with subtle blue streaks. He was sweating, and his eyes darted nervously, but he stayed where he was and kept pulling the bookshelf alongside the boys. Quickly, a plan formed in his head.

"I need you to find a phone, Mister Garcia," Phineas answered, quickly coming up with and relaying his plan to the others. "You need to call the police and get them here as soon as possible. Tell them this man is psychotic and dangerous, and they need to hurry."

"Sí," the man agreed and shot like a jet out of the room, leaving three behind him. Phineas turned to his brother.

"Bro, I hate to ask for this, but you need to get everyone else out of the building. Even with all of us here holding this thing shut, he'll get loose. We need to make sure he doesn't do anything drastic like pull a hostage situation," Phineas said. As expected, Ferb cocked a confused eyebrow, silently asking why Phineas himself or the other person who stand behind him do it. Phineas already had his answer.

"Because if she suddenly said 'Hey everyone, let's go outside', then they would only stay and ask questions. I don't think you'll have that problem. By the way, when you're done, shut the doors and make sure no one goes in for anything. Only let the police in," Phineas explained, hoping that would get his brother to move. With a final nod, and a look that practically screamed to be careful, Ferb left the room. Phineas concentrated on pulling the shelf and keeping it in place.

"What should I do?" the last voice asked, catching Phineas' attention. It was not as though he had forgotten that she was there. No, he was very well aware of her presence, but he did not know how to address her. Keep calling her Ana and keep up the charade, or in this moment of panic and planning refer to her as she should be called, Isabella? He turned to her, hoping that he could make a decision quickly as he did the others.

"Phineas, what do you want me to do?" she asked again, pulling as hard as she could on the bookcase. She, too, had questions about herself and the boy beside her. Just yesterday she had re-introduced herself to him, only as Ana. She had been a stranger then, and for all he knew she was still a stranger now. She did not know what to say or do, but she knew that she wanted to stay with him, help in whatever way she could. Her sapphire eyes searched his, begging that he answer her. In their own little world, he did.

"Just… just don't leave my side for now…" Phineas answered, silently begging that she would not leave him. For now, or for a while. He had spent so long looking, and he did not want her to go yet.

"Phin…" Isabella said his name quietly. Of course she would not leave him. Not now at least. She would follow him forever if need be. But right now, there was something more troubling happening.

The bookcase had jerked itself open, and crazed grey eyes stared out of the black abyss. Knowing that they could not stay much longer, Phineas grabbed Isabella's hand and rushed out of the library, getting her as far away from that creep as possible. They could not, however, block out his voice.

"Careful kiddies, because I'm coming after you…"

_**Loic: Heeeere's Johnny! *crazed glare***_

_**14AmyChan: *shoes Loic off stage* okay, so I hope you all liked that chapter, and now I'm gonna run from the cannon characters~! *^_^***_

_**Phineas and Isabella: *chase after 14AmyChan with no mercy***_

_**Ferb: *chases too, then stops and faces you* Please read and review. *continues chase***_


	11. CH 10-The Mad House

_**14AmyChan: okay, so I know that you all wanna hit me for taking so long, but here's the next chapter~! *^_^***_

_**Isabella: oh, great..**_

_**14AmyChan: hey, you're holding hands with Phineas!**_

_**Isabella:… true.**_

_**Phineas: 14AmyChan doesn't own me, my brother, or Isabella**_

_**14AmyChan: but I do own Loic and Daniel~! Mwahahaha! XD**_

Phineas ran. He ran not only for his own life, but for the woman behind him as well. He ran as far as he could from the library, unsure where to go next, but anyplace away from that creep. He searched for a way out when a horrible thought struck him.

"Phineas, didn't you tell Ferb to lock the doors and not let anyone in or out?" Isabella asked as she ran from behind the red headed teenager. She held onto his hand for dear life, but matched pace with him well. She had to, if they were both to survive.

"Yeah, just thought about that," Phineas admitted, looking around for someplace to hide. A jarring noise from behind them caused him to jolt into action. He found a nearby bathroom and made his way toward it, only to be pulled to the side by Isabella.

"Isabella!" the red haired boy called from surprise, however his voice fell on deaf ears. Isabella was now leading, and it was all he could do to keep up. They rounded a corner into a short hallway when they heard the pounding of thunderous footsteps behind them. Phineas looked back, then forward to Isabella once more. What was she doing? Where was she taking him?

His unasked questions were answered a split second later when Isabella ducked into a pink room with himself in tow. Before he could ask any questions, she had closed the door, locked it, and was reaching for a chair. Catching her drift, Phineas helped her to wedge the chair tightly under the doorknob, hoping to buy some time. They then backed away from the door and held their breath. The footsteps were coming closer…. and closer…. and…

They passed right by the room. Without so much as slowing down. Both teens released the breaths they had been holding, then chuckled nervously, relieved that they had bought a few more minutes..

"Never go into the bathroom when a psychopath is after you," Isabella stated softly, a useful tip in this instance. "That's usually the first place they look."

"How do you know that?" Phineas asked just as quietly, sitting on a nearby bed. He was catching his breath while searching for a way out. In this pink room, there was a bed, a dog bed, a closet, a dresser, a mirror, a… oh.

"Hollywood's nearby. I picked up a few tips from them," Isabella shrugged as she walked around the room. Phineas watched as she trailed her fingers along the walls. She seemed at peace, yet disturbed. Satisfied, yet hungry for something more. Content, yet unhappy. He took a second glance around the room.

"Whatever happened to you, your room didn't change much," Phineas stated, taking in the pink and purple surroundings once more. There was even a dog bed, but with an empty name tag. The dresser looked the same, the walls were painted the same color as when she was little…

"Really?" Isabella asked, stopping in her circling of the room. Phineas just watched her for a moment while he talked.

"Yeah, same colors and everything," Phineas answered, remembering to be quiet. That man may have passed the room by, but there was always a chance that he could double back and sweep the floor again. He was greeted by a soft chuckle.

"Once, dad wanted me to repaint the room a different color. I stayed inside for a whole week until he dropped the issue," Isabella smiled, remembering her fourteen year old self having that argument. Whenever she had asked why, he had responded with a silly excuse. At the end of that week, Isabella had threatened to run away, which had stopped the man in his tracks. Afterwards, they had bought pink and purple streamers and hung them up in her room. It was a funny little memory from a funny little life.

"It sounds like something you'd do," Phineas smiled, remembering the girl from his past. That stubborn caring girl who refused to take no for an answer. Her determination had seen him through many a project more than once. For some reason, the sentiment caused her faint smile to droop, and she then made her way next to the boy. She sat down on the bed.

"Phineas… I—what's wrong?" Isabella asked, not taking a liking to the sharp intake of breath that the young man had just done on instinct. Either he was really uncomfortable with her, or something had just hurt him. She backed away for a few seconds before realizing his left shoulder had been dislocated.

"You're hurt! If we don't get that back into place soon, I'm not sure what's gonna happen to your arm… If you'd be able to build again… hold on a sec," Isabella assessed the situation quickly, then left just as swiftly for her closet. She came out with a spare orange belt, then shook her head and tossed it aside. She then hurried to the other side of the bed and Phineas heard a very audible _riiiip!_

"How did you even do all that running and talking without screaming out in pain?" Isabella wondered aloud as she brought a strip of cloth over to Phineas. It was wide enough to cover his arm if needed. The boy noticed that she had a look of complete business about her, like when they were young and she had to do something she didn't want to, but knew had to be done anyways. "Okay, this is gonna hurt, all right?"

"What's gonna—AUGH!" Phineas' yell of pain reverberated throughout the entire room—and most likely the entire household—as Isabella finished popping his shoulder back into place. Quickly, she took the strip of cloth she had with her and fashioned a simple sling for his arm, quietly giving directions as she did so. Phineas noted that the initial flare of pain died down rather quickly, and he found himself able to focus with more clarity without the pain to block his concentration.

"We're gonna want to have a professional look at it later, but for now you don't want to move it a lot. Just keep it in the sling and you'll be okay, all right?" Isabella finished as she completed tying the second rate sling around the back of Phineas' neck. By now they were extremely close, and Phineas felt… odd. Not in a bad way, of course, but just… weird. He wanted to draw Isabella near and keep her close by with his good hand. He wanted to—

"Phineas…" Isabella said his name again, and the boy's attention was snapped back to the words she was saying now. He looked her square in the eye so his mind would not wander, but he still wanted to… well, do _something_. He had never kissed a girl before; he had been saving it for her, and now…

However, a fierce blush enveloped her face and she backed away and stood quickly. Phineas could not decide if he should be grateful for the fact that she was trying not to distract him so they could get out of there, or sad that she had moved further away from him. A vast majority of him was feeling the latter at that point. He attempted to sort out his feelings by running a hand through his hair, inadvertently wiping some sweat away from his forehead. He then took a deep breath.

"What was I to you?" Isabella asked hesitantly, not quite meeting the boy's eyes. Phineas was stunned for more than a few seconds, wondering what she meant even though the question was clear as day.

"When we were ten, what was I to you?" she asked again, just as shyly, but with a touch more hesitance. Phineas stood and reached his right hand up in an attempt to get her to look at him. He stared in her endless eyes, attempting to at once answer the question and tell her how he felt now. He opened up his mouth to speak when he heard something he wished he had not.

The sound of a key, slipping into a lock, and the turning of a very specific doorknob.

Thinking little more than the safety of the woman beside him, Phineas reached down and grabbed Isabella's hand, then led her swiftly into the closet. He quickly noted that there was just barely enough room for one person to hide in there, and decided that it would be better for her safety if he could make it to the other side of the room before that creep got in. Bait him away from Isabella, and she could probably walk away from it all without so much as a scratch.

He was about to close the door when something in those sapphire eyes held him there for a moment. He wanted so _badly_ to kiss her now, to somehow let her know that she would be fine and that he loved her.

A severe beating on the door reminded Phineas of where he was and what he had to do. So rather than do what he desperately wanted to, he shut the door quickly and made his way to stand in front of the door. He had no plan and no idea what to expect. He only knew one thing.

He had to protect his Isabella at all costs.

_**14AmyChan: I think I should end it off there~! *^_^***_

_**Phineas and Isabella: *glare***_

_**14AmyChan: nope, gonna end it there. ^^;**_

_**Ferb: *glares evilly***_

_**14AmyChan: meap! *continues to write***_

* * *

_It's a good thing that Danny made a spare key for her room…_ Loic thought as he jammed a rustic key into the knob of little Ana's door. She didn't know that her father had made a key, but that worked out to his advantage. It had taken him more than a few moments to deduce that at least one of the two had hidden themselves away in Ana's room, and he had decided to at least try to look civil when going to get the keys from the master bedroom. At least this way, it was not breaking and entering.

The key finally set off the right amount of mechanisms to disengage the lock and allow him access into the room. What would he find in there? Perhaps two teens, huddled together, sharing precious goodbyes? Maybe even a little make out scene? The thought of catching the two together made Loic's skin crawl in anticipation. The door gave some resistance, which caused the man's frustration to slowly ascend. However, the door gave way in a mere matter of minutes.

As soon as he barged through the now broken door, Loic's eyes darted around the room, searching for their targets. The girl was not in sight, however, Phineas was. And he was alone. With his arm in a sling. Defenseless. Loic could feel a grin sneak its way onto his face. He had won. He had gotten Phineas. It was all too good to be true, so he stood up straighter to enjoy his victory.

"How does it feel to be abandoned, Phineas?" Loic asked casually, as if talking about the weather. When the boy didn't respond, he continued. "You don't have your step-brother, you don't have your sister… no family, no friends… it looks to me like everyone's given up on you… how does that feel?"

Rather than the passionate backlash Loic expected to receive from him, Phineas only stayed silent. His lack of action confused the man for a moment, but he soon waved it off, deducing that he simply needed to push harder.

"Of course, the fact that you've been dragging them down for the past six or seven years doesn't help… you gave up living, didn't you? For her?" Loic asked. The red headed boy stood there for a moment, but the psychopath knew he had hit a nerve. The boy had tensed up and was wearing the beginnings of a truly nasty scowl.

_I'm so proud…_ Loic felt like saying, but rhetorically bit his tongue. Instead, he pushed harder to break the boy with a smile.

"Yes, and while you gave up living your life, she had one here. She was given three square meals a day, whatever she wanted, a plethora of friends… Everyone wanted to be a part of Anabella Garcia's life. A life that you have utterly destroyed."

"Stop it," Phineas said quietly, his voice hard as ice. Loic could practically hear the screaming going on inside the boy's triangular head, begging that what he said was not the truth. For the boy's turmoil, Loic was delighted, so he pressed on.

"Stop what? Telling you the truth? That you come out here after six—no… _seven_—years, hoping to find your 'best friend', and go home and live happily ever after? You didn't even _think_ that she could be happy here. She had a life, she had a family. She was even happy here _without you_."

"Just stop it!" Phineas' voice was hoarse, beginning on true rage. The elder man wanted to dance at the sight of the red head breaking down, but knew that he had only a little more to go until the young lad could be in a true position to break.

"Why? Because you know that you ruined everyone's lives running after a girl who was happier without you?" Loic smirked in triumph as he continued. "Just face it, boy; you've been played like a fiddle. And you let it happen with your silly little feelings that got so easily hurt."

Instead of more begging as Loic expected, Phineas had set his jaw, determined not to speak out anymore. Still, the psychopath grinned. It simply felt right that his son would rebuke his words of wisdom. Every son did. To get him to see the light, Loic put on the finishing touch.

"Just face it. She probably didn't want you around. Didn't want you here. You just came in and ruined the life she had. And you know what? There's nothing you can do to fix—"

A sound suddenly caught Loic's ears. Faint, yet clear. Silent, yet strong. The sound of wailing sirens soon filled the air, and the older man's head was drowned with multiple thoughts all at once. Was this another trick of his head? Should he try to escape? No, because the boy might get away. He was so close to breaking him!

Loic cast an angry glare at the boy before noticing something. Rather than a triumphant smirk or the poker face he had been wearing throughout the entire conversation, the boy had a different expression entirely. It was one of fright. Now, as much as Loic would have _loved_ to believe it was him causing that expression, he knew better. It was something behind him…

* * *

Isabella stood in the closet for only a few minutes, attempting to sort out for herself what exactly Phineas had and had not said. While they had been talking, an overpowering urge to hold him close had scared her, and she had backed off as quickly as she could. In the life she had now, she could not remember such an urge to be with someone so badly.

However, in the memories she had dredged up from her past life, she could remember that she had always been around him whenever she could. And in the last few days of summer, when the threatening calls had begun and the frightening letters threatening her family if she told anyone came in the mail, she had really felt closest to him. Isabella had no idea if it were because she wanted it to be so, or if he had actually been doing it, but she had felt Phineas had attempted to be closer with her at that time.

He had called her Izzy for the first time. He had held her hand when she felt too scared to talk. He had smiled just a little bit bigger when she walked through the gate as she normally did back then. He had wanted her around, seemingly just as much as she had wanted to be around him.

Those memories had brought up the question, and Phineas had still not answered. Quietly, Isabella knocked the door to her closet ajar, only to find that the red-headed man was taking a verbal beating from the psychopath who had been at fault for ruining her entire life.

Whatever was being said, Isabella could tell it hurt her companion deeply. Behind those guarded eyes, she could see the pain that rained down with each word. Determined that she had seen enough, Isabella poked her head out of the closet door and searched for something sturdy when she almost tripped on the chair that she and Phineas had used to wedge the door in place.

A symphony of sirens reached her ears and Isabella picked the chair up off the ground. She noted that the older blonde psycho became extremely distracted, but also as a consequence more paranoid. Her hope was that she could sneak behind him and somehow knock him to the ground, allowing herself and Phineas access to the downstairs to—hopefully—meet up with some police officers to take Loic away.

Before she could gather enough courage to knock Loic off his feet, Isabella's eyes naturally flicked over to Phineas'. Before, they had a guard up, they had been hardened. In fact, they had been a little scary, but now… Now he looked different. His eyes were softer, and they had a bit more of a shine to them… And they also had…

…Fear?

Isabella didn't have the time to think clearly, because what happened next happened in the blink of an eye. Without any kind of warning or signal that he was about to switch positions, Loic turned swiftly, efficiently knocked the chair out of Isabella's grasp, and managed to duck behind her with one hand holding her wrists together at an excruciating angle and the other firmly placed around her throat. He faced Phineas once more with a chilling look of triumph in his eyes.

"I will not loose here, _son_. You will do as I say or the girl gets it," Loic's voice was coated with a thick layer of insanity and fear. With his survival instincts kicking in and the only way out through hostages, it was obvious what the man was attempting to do. Isabella could not bear to watch it happen in front of her.

"Down the stairs and out the back door, Phineas," the insanity personified said huskily, his hand flexing over Isabella's throat for good measure. Both teens' faces drained of color almost instantly. Then slowly, agonizingly, painfully, excruciatingly…

…Phineas began to move to the door of the room. He moved slowly past Loic and Isabella, following the directions given to him. Isabella watched him walk past her with more than a tear in her eye. This could not be happening. There was no way that man could win! Not like this!

"Now you, girl," Loic spat, attempting to jerk her out of the doorway. Isabella remained where she was, even jerking back a little. His hand flexed even more on her throat, but she did not care about her safety at that moment. There was no way any human being could treat another human as he had just done.

"What's the matter with you? I said _move!_" Loic almost screeched, once again trying to yank her out of her spot, but she held firm. The injustices that she had gone through because of this man were terrible. The only thing that could have possibly made it worth the pain was meeting her biological father, who she had actually intended to find and meet once she had graduated high school.

"You took me away from my family and friends when I was ten years old… you locked me in a basement for a year and messed with my head until you broke me… and then you took the rest of my life away from me… and now that the one person who meant the world to me has come back, you're trying to take him away, too…" Isabella's voice was quiet, and Loic almost did not catch it, much less Phineas, who had stopped walking when he realized he was not being followed and was quietly backtracking outside of Loic's notice. He hoped to separate the creep from his friend, and keep her safe.

"What are you going on about, girly?" Loic asked, once again yanking on Isabella's wrists and neck to get her to move. She budged only slightly, but then moved back to her spot, causing the elder man to loose his footing for a second.

But a second was really all she needed.

Without another word or any warning, Isabella hefted herself to the opposite side of where Loic pulled her to be, causing the man to loose even more of his stability. As he fumbled, the girl backed up quickly, and was able to toss the elder man over her head. He was sent flying a few feet and was boisterously met headfirst with the floor. However, the momentum almost sent her plummeting headfirst into the ground as well. She braced herself for a painful impact…

…only to not have it come. A pair of sturdy arms had caught her from behind and prevented her from falling. They then helped her to stand upright and left her waist. Isabella turned around to see that Phineas was repositioning his hand so it lay on her shoulder, helping to keep her steady, but also subtly telling her that he would not allow her to be placed in that kind of situation again. She placed a hand on top of his on her shoulder, and was about to say something when the room was flooded with police officers and paramedics, who had heard the noise.

While the police officers took a drowsy Loic to one of their cars in a straight jacket, the two teenagers kept in close proximity as the medics checked them for injuries and hurried to professionally reset Phineas' shoulder. They knew that they would have to get some talking done soon, and both were in clear anticipation of it.

_**14AmyChan: okay, that's the end of this chapter, really. *^_^***_

_**Loic: what the-?**_

_**14AmyChan: simple, you called her "girly". Since that's Buford's nickname for her, I'm sure that one word would have caused some kind of memory trigger for her to remember how to fight.**_

_**Loic: what, just from that one word?**_

_**14AmyChan: *nods happily***_

_**Loic: …I hate you…**_

_**14AmyChan: I know. *^_^***_

_**Phineas: Please read and review~!**_


	12. CH 11-The End

_**14AmyChan: okay, last chapter, right here~! *^_^***_

_**Isabella: thank goodness!**_

_**14AmyChan: I don't own anything that is cannon!Phineas and Ferb**_

_**Phineas: She owns Loic and Daniel.**_

_**14AmyChan: let the show go on~! *^_^***_

"I'm fine, it hurts a little bit, but I'm fine," Phineas Flynn once again reassured the paramedic examining his shoulder for the umpteenth time. He once again took in the sights around him. Here he was, on the end of a paramedic vehicle, having his recently dislocated and replaced shoulder checked out by professionals, while being bathed in the flashing red and blue lights that sat upon the nearby police cars. Ferb, Daniel, and the party guests were being questioned by the policemen about the night's proceedings, and the Mexican man seemed more anxious than when Phineas had seen him last. Vaguely wondering as to the fate of this poor, used man, the teenager looked to his right.

On the rear of the ambulance alongside him was none other than Isabella herself, assuring her own medical help that she, too, was in good health for the moment. She had come through with little more than a few bruises, and—while he wished it had been no harm at all—the young lad was grateful no more damage had befallen his feminine friend.

Isabella smiled as the paramedics walked away and turned to her left, only to find Phineas had been staring at her with a small smile of his own. She playfully lifted a hand and waved at the boy who sat not two feet away from her. It was a gesture he returned gladly with his good arm.

"Wanna walk around a little bit?" Isabella asked, hoping to finally have a word in private with the red-haired man. Phineas nodded and hopped to his feet with a smile, then winced at the pain the unexpected jostle had caused his injured arm. The pain, however, was forgotten as soon as his raven-haired companion joined his side. They walked not too far from the blinking lights of police cars, but far enough so they could be bathed by the steady glow coming from the party-lit mansion in front of them. Here, Isabella stopped, staring wistfully at the house before her.

"I didn't belong here… not really…" Isabella stated slowly, her eyes sweeping the structure from top to bottom, a delicate frown on her face. "But… there are so many things I still can't remember about when I was younger, about my life then. I know I had a life there, a real life with friends, family, and even a dog!" Here, Isabella chuckled about the thought of a small Chihuahua nipping at her heels, in his own way demanding attention and relishing in the affection when it had been given. However, it was just a thought, a memory of a life past, and that in itself brought up a whole new series of questions. Questions that caused the young lady's heart to clench upon itself in sorrow.

"I remember a lot of it, or it could only be a little. I can't tell… But the life I do remember, I would really like to go back to. But I can't…" Isabella's words crashed terribly in Phineas' ears. He turned swiftly to see that the girl's eyes had begun to mist over, and he knew it was as hard for her to say it as it was for him to hear it. To attempt to ease both of their pain, he gently maneuvered his right arm over her shoulders and pulled her close. She allowed him to do so, and they simply stood there for a moment, shoulder to shoulder, dwelling on their current situation.

"Why not?" Phineas finally choked out, feeling as if he were attempting to hang onto a life that was quickly fading. After everything that had happened, she had said that she could not return, and he had a valid reason to want to know why. His question, however, was returned with another.

"How many people besides you believed I was alive a week ago?" Isabella asked from his side. The question stunned the young man, yet made absolute sense. It was a question that fed a prolonged silence, which inadvertently gave the young woman her answer. Thus, she continued her thought, though it need not be said.

"So if I just pop up back home, alive, after being presumed dead for—how many years have they thought I was dead…?" Isabella paused in her hypothesis to wonder the obvious. How long had this man been on his own in his belief of her being alive? A few days? Weeks? Months? Perhaps years of searching alone?

"You were announced dead about six years ago," Phineas answered, not quite realizing the massive implications of what he had just said. But she did. And she quickly fit the pieces together, and once in place, the thought touched her heart. She at once thought it touching, yet sad. Sweet, yet terrible. Drowned in these swirling emotions, she turned her head into Phineas' chest and gently wrapped her arms around his torso, taking care not to disturb his injured arm. It was an embrace which Phineas returned.

"Isabella? What's wrong…?" he asked, confused for a moment as to the sudden display of affection, though he did not mind it in the least. Perhaps the thought of being "dead" that long had shocked her…?

"That's how long?" Isabella managed to choke out. Tears began to slip themselves down her face and onto Phineas' shirt, the emotion becoming too strong to repress any longer. "That's how long you looked for me all by yourself?"

A wave of guilt passed over the boy as he realized he himself was the reason for Isabella's tears. He held her close, attempting to find some way to answer the question without upsetting her further. Another question—asked in the heat of pursuit—returned to him. A question he had not yet answered.

"Stubborn," he stated firmly, his voice filled with warmth. The statement confused Isabella, and she pulled away slightly to look Phineas in the eye. Her confusion seemed lost on the boy as he placed his hand on her shoulder and continued with a twinkle in his eye that she could not quite comprehend.

"Determined… headstrong… intelligent…"

"Phineas… what—?"

"Kind… good… sweet… adorable…"

"What are you—?"

"Trustworthy… amazing… compassionate… and much, much more," Phineas finished his obscure list as his friend's face weaved itself into one of confusion. A few beats of silence passed before Isabella deemed she could question the list without interruption.

"What was that about?" Isabella inquired, having no clue as to why the red-haired teenager had just switched topics to recite a list of adjectives. Was it his way of becoming more comfortable? She could not remember.

"That's what you were like when I knew you," Phineas admitted, and continued before Isabella could get a word in. "Before, you asked me what you were to me at that age. You were my friend, but more importantly you were one of my best friends. We would call each other if something was wrong, and celebrate when things went right. We picked each other up when we were down, and wherever me and Ferb were, you were almost always nearby. You were one of the most important people in my life, and I couldn't just let you go."

"But, Phineas—"

"I know there was a very real chance of you being… gone… forever. But I didn't want to think about that. To me, you just _had_ to be alive… That probably makes me sound like a love-struck fool, but… I just couldn't…" Phineas' voice trailed off and he turned away from Isabella, thinking about his words. Though nothing except for the truth, even he had to now admit to himself that he had wrapped himself up in his attempts to find her. And now that he had, he had run into a very large road block.

"Phineas, I _want_ to go back. Believe me; I want to go back to the place I grew up. I remember it was in the Tri-State Area now, but I can't quite remember the name of the town… But if I went back… If I went back now after all these years… then what would happen? A dead girl wandering the streets of the city, what would happen?"

"Isabella, I may be the only one who openly admitted that there was still a belief of you being alive, but I'm sure that I wasn't the only one who thought like that. Your mom still looks at the door every day when my mom goes over to see her, and sometimes she'll say something about you coming home soon. Not everyone really thinks you're gone forever," Phineas' comfort helped to ease the girl's fears a little bit, though some legitimate trepidation still lingered in her mind with good reason.

"What if I do actually walk in the house, say 'Mom, I'm home', and she passes out?" Isabella wondered aloud. That was the way things happened sometimes. A person would either pass out, think they're hallucinating, or both. What if the same happened to her loved ones?

"Then we'll let you guys meet up in a calm setting, so she can take the surprise better," Phineas answered. Isabella cast a hopeful glance up to Phineas, then shot a weary look over to the general area where everyone else remained.

"What about Dad? I feel bad that he got roped into all of this because he wanted to see me and was too scared to come and face my mom," Isabella admitted. Though she did feel bad for the man, she also felt more than a slight pang of anger and hurt for having had almost half of her life taken away by how he felt.

"We could probably add a seat to the plane to bring him along. Looks like he's pretty much beating himself up for all of this anyways," Phineas noted. He watched as Daniel stood his ground and remained to talk with the police officers about his faults and his offenses to the law. In both teens' eyes, it was one of the bravest things the man had done.

"After we pay his bail, of course," Phineas stated as he and Isabella turned back to the mansion, regaining their shoulder-to-shoulder position. They stood there for a few moments in comfortable silence, his hand on her shoulder while her head leaned comfortably against his. A cool wind nipped at both of their noses, and they both smiled.

"Think we can make this work? A dead girl walking the city streets?" Isabella asked after a while. She was greeted by an impossible grin on the red-headed teen's face.

"We'll make it work," Phineas reassured her, a smile growing on her face as well. "After all, nothing's impossible."

**One Year Later**

"Have you got your cell phone?" a woman asked; triple checking as her daughter was getting ready to depart from the house.

"_Sí, mama_," Isabella answered as she showed her mother the item in question. Before her mother could ask, she also revealed the pepper spray she always kept in her purse. Vivian smiled warmly, tell-tale signs of tiredness in her eyes.

"Oh, _mi híja_…" Vivian smiled, wrapping her daughter into a loving embrace. It was one Isabella returned gladly. She was still getting used to having her mother back in her life, as well as—

"Come home safely," Daniel Garcia-Shapiro said as soon as mother and daughter parted. He gave his daughter a brief, but loving hug.

"I will, Dad," Isabella stated when they broke. The girl beamed at her parents, who were together and not fighting or frightened. They were just together. And happy. Isabella headed out the door thinking about how her parents had already been married for six months! It had taken a while to get used to living with both parents at once, but the family was getting adjusted to the change rather quickly. Vivian had been more than livid with Daniel for taking her Isabella away, but soon forgave him after hearing the entire story, as backed up by Isabella, Phineas, and Ferb.

Isabella walked to the curb when she felt her phone vibrate; accompanied with the catchy line _It's a waggle dance!_ The teenager wondered which of the girls had texted her and was pleasantly surprised when it was Gretchen.

Hey, Chief,  
The girls and I wanted to know if you wanted to  
hang out this Saturday? We're going to  
karaoke!  
-Gretch

Isabella smiled. When she had first returned to Danville, the former fireside girls had instantly been there. She assumed either Phineas or Ferb had called them over. They had all cried, and when told of the recent and not-so-recent events, cried some more. Tears of joy at Isabella's return mixed with tears of sorrow for all the years lost.

For the past year, the former fireside girls had all gotten together every other Saturday night to catch up, to have fun, and to be BFFs in general. After texting back an affirmation to the event, Isabella pocketed her phone and proceeded across the now-familiar street.

Once there, her phone decided to buzz with a _Big Hunkin Hole in my heeaaart!_ Isabella, curious as to why either Buford or Baljeet would text her now, checked the screen.

Hey Girly,  
Dinner Bell says to wait about five minutes  
before you can come back here  
-Bufe

Though curious as to why she was being asked to wait before coming into the backyard, Isabella looked around for something else to do. Upon noticing the Johnson car parked in the driveway, she decided to go inside and see what Candace was up to.

"Hey Candace," Isabella greeted as she walked in the house. Instead of Candace, she was greeted by a hyperactive five year old child who instantly lunged for Isabella's legs, then proceeded to run around her with the boundless energy of her mother.

"Hey Aunt Isabella!" Amanda shouted of joy, confusing eighteen year old. Throughout the year that she had known the child, she had never once been called an Aunt. The teenager simply followed the girl with her eyes and finally decided to go out on a curious limb.

"Hey, Amanda," Isabella started, but before she could get to the question, the girl's mother walked in. Amanda hid behind Isabella with a smile on her face as Candace pretended to search the room.

"Now where is that little girl?" Candace asked aloud, seemingly not noticing Isabella. However, the notion was soon dispelled when the red-haired woman shot her a wink. Catching onto the game, Isabella joined in.

"You mean a little girl with flaming red hair?" Isabella asked, striking a thinking pose with a smile. Amanda peeked out cautiously from behind the raven-haired girl, obviously wondering if the adult were about to betray her secret hiding spot.

"About this tall?" Candace played along, her hand roughly at about Amanda's height. Said child giggled uncontrollably at her mother's blatant confusion, having decided that her beloved aunt would not double cross her.

"Giggling like a maniac?" Isabella asked, pointing out the child's behavior. Amanda giggled all the louder, clearly enjoying her game of hide-and-go-seek.

"Wait, I think I hear her…" Candace trailed off dangerously as she made her way to the couch in the front room, still in clear sight of Isabella and—therefore—Amanda. "Behind here!" Candace called before stealing a glance behind the couch. When her surprise search yielded nothing, Candace straightened up with her back to the duo.

"Well, if she's that good at hide and seek, she'll never be found… and then she'll never have her fish crackers snack…" Candace would have trailed off, had she not been interrupted by an excited child.

"I want fish crackers!" Amanda called as she darted out from behind Isabella and into her mother's arms. Candace took the young girl up and gave her a hug.

"All right, Amanda, you can have your snack now," Candace said as she set her daughter down. As soon as she was released, the five year old made a bee line for the dining room, where her golden fish treasure await her. Behind her stood two laughing adults.

"They grow up so fast…" Candace mused, watching as her daughter delightedly ate her crackers with an open lid cup full of apple juice.

"Yeah, I know what you mean," Isabella agreed. Her mind drifted off to her entrance into the house, and she remembered she still had no answer as to why Amanda had called her what she did. She looked to the elder woman for answers. "Hey, Candace?"

"What's up?"

"When I came in the door, Amanda called me 'Aunt Isabella'. Any idea why?" Isabella asked, another memory tugging at her mind. It had been a year, and most of the memories had returned—well, judging from what she told her family and friends, it was most of her memories—but there were moments when she would attempt to bring up a time of her life and she would come up blank.

However, this question got a curious response from Candace. The woman had never been amazing with keeping secrets, always determined to expose the truth. So now, when said woman began to stammer—her known trait for lying—Isabella knew something was up.

"Candace, what's going—" Isabella's questioning was interrupted by the vibration of her phone accompanied with a very British accent saying _This is gonna be sweet_. Isabella glanced at her phone and noted that Ferb had said that it was safe to come in the backyard now.

"I'll ask you later. It looks like Phineas is up to his old tricks," Isabella smiled as she went out of the back door. While she expected to find some kind of contraption, she did not expect to find Phineas, sitting by himself, in front of the tree. It was a special tree to everyone, and no one could bear to take it down. So up it stayed. And now Phineas was the only one sitting beneath it, patting the seat beside him for her to come and join him. Glad for the time alone with her boyfriend of eleven and a half months, Isabella complied happily.

When the two had returned to Danville, they had painstakingly agreed to wait a while before getting into a relationship to make sure that what they felt was real, and not the adrenaline rush. When they could not bear to spend more than a few days without talking to each other, just to say hi and just to check in, they knew they were still meant to be together. That and the fact that they kept catching themselves trying to kiss each other didn't help either. They gave up after a couple weeks.

And now they were together, and happy. Isabella listened as Phineas talked about a few new ideas he had, and she input her comments and advice from time to time. Then, after a while, the conversation switched to what Isabella had been up to, what her new ideas were, and how college was for both of them. They had taken different classes, but were on-campus at pretty much the same time.

"And how are Ferb and Vanessa doing?" Isabella wondered at the odd couple. She was able to vaguely remember the girl whom Ferb had crushed on as a boy. When he had returned with Phineas, Isabella, and Daniel, the first person he had talked to was Vanessa. It turned out that the two had had increasing contact over the previous years, and had gradually moved from acquaintances to friends to best friends to eventually two people madly in love. When he had turned eighteen a few days after their return, the two had seriously talked marriage and—upon a beautiful proposal and an affirmative response—the two had gotten married not a month later. Though most people seemed to be awkward with the relationship upon being introduced to it, everyone knew the couple was happy. And really, that was all that mattered.

"They're talking about kids, last I heard," Phineas said with a grin. Isabella beamed brightly, wondering about a little Fletcher running around. She closed her eyes so she could picture a brilliant boy, or perhaps a daughter.

"That's good for them," Isabella beamed. She was about to lean on Phineas' shoulder when she realized he had moved. Her eyes snapped open to find that Phineas had disappeared. She stood quickly and walked around the tree, somehow knowing he was only behind it.

"Phineas, where—"

Isabella's question halted itself as soon as she found her boyfriend behind the tree. On bended knee. With a small velvet box in his hands. Isabella's own flew to her mouth in surprise. Phineas gave a weak and hopeful smile.

"I know we've only been dating for a year, and I know things have been really crazy, but even so… I wouldn't love anyone more than you. Isabella, will you consider marrying me?" Phineas asked. The shock of it all surprised Isabella, as well as the fact that this was a bit small for the man in question. However, that was a small detail. The big one was how she was going to answer the question.

Isabella nodded vehemently with a smile on her face and allowed Phineas to place the ring on her left-ring finger. It was a beautiful small diamond surrounded by sapphires. When Phineas stood, she hugged him close, surprised that she had become an engaged woman so quickly. And so quietly…

"We're not going to elope, are we?" Isabella asked suspiciously, pushing away her fiancé to look him dead in the eye. The man laughed and shook his head.

"Not if you don't want to. I just didn't want to make you nervous with something really big. But now that you've said yes, look up," Phineas admitted. Isabella curiously looked into the sky. She grinned at the vibrant cloud arrangements and wondered how she could have ever thought the lad in front of her could ever pull off something small.

I love you, Isabella Garcia-Shapiro! Marry me?  
-Phin

When her eyes fell upon her fiancé again, there was a huge party around her, filled with family and friends. She saw the faces of her mother and father. The former fireside girls beamed brightly at her, having seen the ring already. Buford and Baljeet stood around construction supplies with triumphant smirks on their faces. Isabella guessed this was what they had been doing before she came, and assumed it had been Ferb piloting the plane in the sky to divert her attention as the party had been set up. Said British man walked into the backyard in his normal attire with his wife at his side. The two smiled happily for the newly engaged couple. The Flynn-Fletchers and the Johnsons were there, obviously, with loving smiles on their faces.

As the party drew on, an old Chihuahua came to Isabella's side, and a weary Platypus to Phineas'. With great joy, the two gathered up their respective pets before looking at each other.

"Phineas…" Isabella asked tentatively, instantly attracting his attention. He turned to his best friend fiancé with Perry on his head. The sight caused Isabella to giggle.

"Yeah?" he asked, enjoying the party and being with her. Life had not quite returned to normal when she had returned. There had been many questions and the blend of Daniel into life had definitely changed things forever. However, Phineas would not have had it any other way. Isabella was home, things had changed, but only for the better. And things could not go better than how they were at the moment.

"Thank you," Isabella smiled as she snuck an arm around Phineas' torso. He gladly returned the hug. Pinky and Perry retreated tactfully, knowing what was to come and not wanting to be in the middle of it.

"For what?" Phineas asked, his face conveying perfectly his playfulness. That was one of the things Isabella had fallen in love with him again for. She smiled.

"Thank you for making everything so perfect," Isabella answered, drawing her fiancé into a kiss. He gladly obliged to her silent request. And for now, everything was indeed perfect.

…/…/…/

**Somewhere in the Quad State Area**

An insane asylum was at the change of shifts. A new employee walked around the building, hoping to find his charge's room before the man tried anything dangerous. He found it quickly enough, and proceeded to stay in front of the door, guarding it.

Unbeknownst to this poor, new employee, his charge had easily squirmed his way out of his straight jacket. He needed it off so he could think. So he could plan. Also, tapping his fingers on the walls helped.

_**14AmyChan: okay, so that's the end~! *^_^***_

_**Isabella: Phineas and I get married at eighteen?**_

_**14AmyChan: not exactly. You guys get **_**engaged**_** at eighteen. I've known couples that have been engaged for a couple years and are just waiting for the right time to get married.**_

_**Phineas: what about jobs and all of that?**_

_**14AmyChan: well, here's the fun bit. All those questions you have, you can ask them. And instead of the drawing an answer like I did with **_**"Where's Phineas"**_**, I'm going to make oneshots~! *^_^***_

_**Isabella: oneshot answers?**_

_**14AmyChan: yup~! Like the day where you and Phineas had out earlier, that'll be the first oneshot.**_

_**Ferb: so, if you like, ask a question about the story and patiently await your answer in story form. It will not be coherently multichapter, but rather a string of oneshots under one title. Feel free to ask questions at any time with the review button below.**_

_**14AmyChan: so please read and review~! And thank you all so much for keeping up with this one~! *^_^* for the first time ever, I'm gonna make a list of people who've supported me thus far on FF. there'll be another list on DA, where this story is also posted. here I go:  
**_

TheNargana

foobar137

PianoMan5

Whythis

fvcutie0028

Book girl fan

Cute as a button22

MassiveSinger

Kale Bishop

phineas81707

TheCartoonFanatic01

Ryan Stoppable

Dallimater

Guest (CH3)

Axis22

FanFicCriTicTheThird

HalyPooH

Yarthayaj'knaushtavdhladleklwa

Thesmartone1997

RedWingChris

Duh (CH4)

Shadouge-and-Silvaze4ever

Guest (CH11)

_**14AmyChan: again, thanks to all these lovely people who-by simply reviewing their thoughts-helped to shape this story and give me inspiration to keep it going. I'll hope to see you guys next time~! *^_^***_


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